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A Believers Thoughts 



BY 

EDITH HICKMAN DIVALL 

AUTHOR OF 
"THE WAY OF VICTORY" ETC. 

WITH A PREFACE BY 

G. CAMPBELL MORGAN, D.D. 



New York Chicago Toronto 

Fleming H. Revell Company 

1, O N D O N AND EDINBURGH 



•^^mmm-mtmmtmtmm^^mmmmmmmm 






Copyright 1906, by 
FLEMING H. RIJVEI,!, COMPANY 



LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
Two Copies Received 

NOV 26 «906 



A xxc, 



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A Copyrjeht^Entry 
CLASS * ; 

COPY B. 




^ 






TO 
MY MOTHER 



INTRODUCTORY PREFACE 

BY THE 

Rev. G. CAMPBELL MORGAN 



\X7TTH the author of these verses I 
have no personal acquaintance, but 
I am in her debt. She has sung to me of 
myself and of God; and by her singing the 
day has been made brighter, the girdle has 
been buckled tighter, and the burden has 
become lighter. 

How rich the Church has been in 
Christ's gifts to her of Singers. Souls are 
they who in their inner life hear the infinite 
music, and express it in such rhythm that 
the hosts of God march to battle in time 
to it. Toilers bend to their burdens with 
new courage in the light of Heaven the 
Singer opens before their astonished vision. 



viii INTRODUCTORY PREFACE 

These singers who cheer the days of our 
pilgrimage are always of our own kin, 
knowing the tides of sorrow and the rapture 
of joy, acquainted with nights of weeping 
and mornings of holy laughter. Yet they 
are far more. They are familiar with God. 
They know His secret, and interpret it to 
us until we find how very near to Him we 
are, and all the commonplaces flame in the 
glory of His unveiling. 

Among His singers are diversities, and 
the degrees of glory differ. Those who are 
simplest and nearest to us in experience 
help us most. Such, as it seems to me, is 
the authoress of these songs of faith. 

I find myself unable to criticise any- 
where. Of course if one were inclined, 
perhaps it might be possible to discover 
defects. I really do not know. The 
strength and sweetness of it all so helps me, 
that I do not notice anything else. 

In these verses there are some things I 
am profoundly thankful for. And perhaps 
not least for the light of God's to-morrow, 
which is always evident. 



INTRODUCTORY PREFACE ix 

"There is sunlight for to-morrow, 

Though to-day is veiled in gloom; 
Joy is woven with our sorrow; 

Life lies just beyond the tomb. 
From the midst of pain and sighing 

Sweetest music sometimes wakes; 
Often hope is almost dying 

Just before the morning breaks. " 

That is but one illustration of a note 
sounding all through, and it is one which 
we often miss. 

Then there is such full-orbed sympathy 
shining on every page, that irresistably one 
feels sorrow shared by this Singer of Love. 

There is a holy and beautiful reverence 
in all the thoughts of God and Christ; and 
yet we are lifted into the consciousness of 
most familiar fellowship. This is most 
beautifully set forth in the poem beginning. 

61 1 have heard Thy voice, O Jesus, 
Speaking to my heart; 
Thou hast called me from the earth-life 
To Thyself apart. " 

That carries conviction with it. It is 
not merely theoretical. It is experimental. 
And the experience it reveals is one much 



x INTRODUCTORY PREFACE 

to be desired. It is that of an adoring 
reverence, and a precious intimacy. 

I thank God for these Songs, and for 
this Singer. Her own words most perfect- 
ly described her work; may they also 
describe her abiding content in God. 

"Since I may write a message to His world 

Straight from the lips of God, henceforth my 
heart 
Shall seek no higher service — shall not strive 
To find a nobler task — a better part. " 

We of the Mother Country owe very 
much to the great New World for the 
Songs of her Singers. There has been a 
new order of music born of the spacious 
and strenuous life of the land of all climates 
and of magnificent distances. We thank 
our God upon every remembrance of 
Whittier, Longfellow, Lowell, and a chorus 
of others, who have touched the affairs of 
a busy age with the spirit of the hidden 
and eternal. This sense of debt, and a 
consciousness of the keen and kind appre- 
ciation with which the messages of some 
of our singers have been received, compels 



INTRODUCTORY PREFACE xi 

me to believe that these songs will find a 
welcome among the children of faith in the 
country of unparalleled activity. The life 
strenuous needs, and knows how to value 
the songs which bring the sense of the 
Eternal Silences as restful spaces on the 
toilsome road. That is exactly what these 
verses pre-eminently do, and therefore to 
my many friends, and to that whole nation 
which has ever been generous to me I 
earnestly commend them. 



c^ 



A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



OF 



The Father 

Friendship 

Surrender 

Discipline 

Guidance 

Service 



Suffering 

Compensation 

Prayee 

The Hereafter 

Christ 

Fellowship 



Other Thoughts 



ON GOD 



- 



A BELIEVER'S 
THOUGHTS 



THE THOUGHTS OF THE 
FATHER. 

" For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither 
are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the 
heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways 
higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your 
thoughts." — Isa. lv. 8, 9. 

T CANNOT understand ; — I do not know 
■*- His thoughts — incomprehensible and vast — 
His thoughts that, like the wide far-stretching sea 
Of life, from which our streams of being flow, 
Reach from the great Forever of the Past 
Into the great Forever yet to be ! 

I may not climb the pathless height : 
A hand withholds me, and my sight 



4 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Is darkly veiled, and, as I seek 
Amid the gloom, I hear Him speak — - 
"So far — no farther " ; and I know 
I cannot find Him so. 

And yet, hereafter, when this soul of mine, 
That reaches blindly out toward the light, 
Conscious of only weakness now, shall pass 
Into the fulness of the Life divine, — 
I shall forget the shadows of to-night, 
No more beholding Him as in a glass — 

And I shall read the great eternal Mind 
Unhindered, with no cloud between, and find 
The key to all life's mystery, and see 
All that on earth has seemed so dark to me. 

Now, while my highest thoughts of Him 

Are so imperfect, dim, 

And while my best conceptions fall 

So far below the truth, and all 

I know — or seem to know — 

Of Right and Good, can only grow 

As flowers grow where no sunbeams shine, 

It is enough that all this life of mine 

Is compassed by His thoughts, and that I take 

no part 
In life, without His knowledge — since His 

heart- 
So mighty that the tempest and the sea 
Obey His voice — yet holds a place for me. 



ON GOD 5 

My Father — teach my restless soul to wait 
Until Thy hand shall open wide the gate 
And lead me into knowledge, lest I stray, 
And miss Thy purpose on this unknown way — 
Lest sometimes, in the dark, I wonder how 
Love can permit its own to suffer now — 
Why joy is linked with sorrow — gain with loss, 
And why the sad way of the cross 

Must always be 
The only road which leads us up to Thee. 

For pain and grief are slow to reach 

The meaning of the lesson Thou wouldst 

teach, — 
Are slow to learn that all Thy Thoughts are wise, 
And often fail to recognise 
The Father's heart of love 
Which always reigns above. 

I read the story of these lives of ours ; — 

The path that yesterday was strewn with flowers 

Is thorny now ; the hearts that seemed to hold 

No place for gloom, are desolate and cold : 

I see the weakest falling in the strife — 

The ruin sin has made in human life ; 

I see how certainly on all 

Sometime the hand of Care must fall — 

How Love must see her dearest drift alone 

Into the silence of the great unknown, 

And leave no ray of hope to cheer 

The breaking hearts which still must linger here. 



6 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I read that Thou in wisdom all hast planned — ; 

But what am I that I should understand 

That which I yet believe — the truth which lies 

Beneath such strange disguise : 

What know I more than those who, day and 

night, 
Are always reaching out towards the light — 
Yet only meet the mystery of pain — 
The weary questioning of heart and brain 
That is not satisfied, and will not rest 
Because no answer comes save " God knows 

best." 

Yet it is true ! The story of the years, 

So strangely woven now with smiles and tears, 

Bright hope and sad regret — 

Is not all written yet : 

I know that sometime in the morning light — 

When they and I shall learn to read aright — 

Our eyes, unveiled, shall trace the perfect 

Thought 
Which lies behind all that Thy hand has wrought. 



" Because Thou hast been my help, therefore in 
the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice." — Ps. lxiii. 7. 

T REMEMBER how Thy guiding hand 

Led me safely in the unknown land ; 
I remember how Thy gentle voice 
Always bade my drooping heart rejoice ; 



ON GOD 7 

I remember how the tender light 

Of Thy smile illumined earth's dark night. 

I remember, and my heart is strong 

For the path which I must tread ere long : 

my Refuge in the days of old, 

1 can trust Thee as the years unfold ; 

I can trust Thee for life's gain or loss — 
Trust Thee in the shadow of the cross : 
Since Thou hast not failed through all the Past, 
I will cling to Thee while life shall last. 

« Yet will I not forget thee."— Isa. xlix. 15, 

IF I forget, 
Yet God remembers ! If these hands of mine 
Cease from their clinging, yet the hands divine 
Hold me so firmly that I cannot fall ; 
And if sometimes I am too tired to call 
For Him to help me, then He reads the prayer 
Unspoken in my heart, and lifts my care. 

I dare not fear, since certainly I know 
That I am in God's keeping — shielded so 
From all that else would harm, and in the hour 
Of stern temptation, strengthened by His power : 
I tread no path in life, to Him unknown ; 
I lift no burden — bear no pain alone ; 
My soul, a calm sure hiding-place has found ; 
The everlasting arms my life surround. 



8 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



"This God is our God for ever and ever: He will 
be our guide even unto death." — Ps. xlviii. 14. 



I 



T is He 
Whose mighty power has formed the earth and 

sea 
With all that therein is — the firmament 
With all its host of sun and moon and stars — 
Who holdeth in the hollow of His hand 
The stormy winds and waves, and by His word 
Out of the dust created man, and breathed 
Into his lips the breath of His own life, 
Then looking on the noblest of His works 
Beheld His own fair image : It is He 
Whose wisdom is unsearchable — Whose ways 
Past finding out — Whose goings have been of 

old 
For ever and shall be for evermore, 
While nations pass and fall in swift decay — 
The Everlasting and the Infinite — 
Yea, it is He who calls Himself our God. 

Shall any evil touch us ? — Shall we fall 
With such strong arms around us ? In the stress 
And turmoil of our life, is there not rest 
For us in such safe keeping ? In the hour 
When from the Borderland our souls look out 
Across the dim unknown which lies beyond, 
Say, shall we fear to close our eyes and pass 
Into the strange, mysterious sleep of death ? 



ON GOD 9 

Nay, God is ours, and in His -hand we lie 
Unharmed and fearless, resting on the word 
Which shall not pass till all things be fulfilled 
That He hath spoken : God is ours, and lo ! 
The keys of life and death are in His hand. 



"Trust in Him at all times." — Ps. lxii. 8. 

O EEK not to choose thy path alone ; 

Our Father's way is best, 
And He will safely lead His own 
To their eternal rest. 

And though dark earth-clouds seem to hide 

The brightness of His face — 
Though the dear hand that used to guide 

Thou canst no longer trace — 

Yet not a cloud can dim His sight ; 

He seeth all thy way 
As plainly through the gloom of night 

As in thy fairest day ! 

Trust thou in God ; believe that He 
Hath called thee by thy name — 

That through the years His love to thee 
Abideth still the same. 

His voice shall speak above the strife, 

And bid its tumult cease ; 
And He shall calm the sea of life, 

And give thee perfect peace. 



io A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



" A happy Christmas and a bright New Year ! " 

A/TAY God's own smile about thy pathway 

-*-■*- shine — 

His everlasting arms thy refuge be — 

His love and perfect peace abide with thee ; — 

So shall all truest Christmas joys be thine. 

And, through the changes of the coming year, 
In happiness and sorrow, calm and strife — 
God keep thy soul above the things of life, 
And be Himself thy guide — at all times near. 



i( I will fear no evil." — Ps. xxiii. 4. 

T KNOW the rest, the quiet rest, 
■*■ Of leaving all with Thee ; 
I tread the path which must be best, 
For Thou dost choose for me. 

My eyes are dim, but Thou canst see ; 

My hands are frail, but Thine 
Are strong ; and as I cling to Thee 

The might of God is mine. 

Do Thou Thy will ; I cannot fear 
With such a faithful Guide ; 

If I may only keep Thee near, 
I shall be satisfied. 



ON GOD ii 



"The Lord . . . my strength and my shield." — 
Ps. xxviii. 7. 

"jVyf Y God, Thou art my Shield ; 
*• A I put my trust in Thee ; 
My helpless life to Thee I yield ; 
Thou wilt my refuge be. 

My God, Thou art my Shield ; 
Thou standest ever near, 
To help me on life's battlefield — 
To calm my rising fear. 

And when the storms are high, 
And waves about me roll, 
Thine ear is open to my cry ; 
Thy hand protects my soul. 

My God, my Shield, my Stay, 
My never-failing Friend, 
Walk with me through life's changeful way, 
And keep me till the end. 



CHANGELESS. 

/^ OD will not change ! The restless years 
^^ may bring 

Sunlight and shade — the glories of the Spring 
And silent gloom of sunless Winter hours — 
Joy mixed with grief — sharp thorns with 
fragrant flowers ; — 



12 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Earth-lights may shine awhile, and then grow 

dim, 
But God is true ! There is no change in Him. 

Rest in the Lord to-day and all thy days. 
Let His unerring hand direct thy ways 
Through the uncertainty, and hope, and fear, 
That meet thee on the threshold of the year ; 
And find, while all life's changing scenes pass by, 
Thy refuge in the love that cannot die. 



"My presence shall go with thee." — Ex. xxxiii. 
14. 

CHINE through life's darkest gloom, O 

^ Presence of the King, 

And where the shadows lie, Thy cloudless sun- 
light bring ; 

Shine — shine across our night, O Thou eternal 
Day, 

For in Thy tender smile the darkness dies away. 

Come, linger near, O King, when hope is 
almost dead, 

And when, with weary feet, the wintry wilds 
we tread ; 

Along the tangled paths our faltering footsteps 
guide, 

Lest, in their maze confused, we wander from 
Thy side. 






ON GOD 13 

Shine in the golden dawn of each fair summer 

morn, 
When earth is welcoming the day in glory 

born, 
And in the noontide heat, lest earth should be 

too bright, 
O Sun of perfect love, unveil Thy matchless 

light : 
Come, when the radiant day dies into eventide ; — 
Amid the twilight shades, O unseen Presence 

glide. 

For ever shining on, O Presence of the King, 
With Thy almighty love, life overshadowing ; 
Lead us through all Thy way — through sunlit 

paths or shade — 
Where hearts are filled with hope, or low in 

sorrow laid — 
Until for evermore, beyond life's wandering, 
Our eyes, unveiled, behold the glory of the King. 



9 "The truth ... the life." — John xiv. 6. 

There is a God! 

I stretch my hands toward Him, in tne light 

That hides Him from my sight, 
And yet I cannot find Him : 

Day by day 
Into the silence patiently I pray, 



ZSE^B 



14 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

But no voice answers me ! 

Years come and go ; 
Still He delays His coming : 

Yet I know, 
Although the silence and the darkness seem 
To mock my faith and hope, it is no dream : 
There is a God ! There is a life divine ! 
And all this hungry, thirsty soul of mine, 
Forgetful of the mists that lie between, 
Goes trembling out toward the great Unseen, 
Whose love alone its empty depths can fill — 
Whose voice alone can bid its strife be still. 
If life were all, and death the end — 
If friend no more might meet with friend — 
Beyond the silence of the tomb — 
If our dead hopes no more might bloom — 
If they who, through long, weary years, 
Have sown in bitterness and tears — 
Might find no harvest by and by — 
If trust were vain and love must die — 
I could not count as worth the cost, 
So hardly won — so quickly lost, 
All that to-day I hold so dear — 
All that has seemed of value here. 

Life is not all ! and death is but the night 
Through which our souls shall pass into the 

light ; 
And this blind love of mine, which, even 

here, 
Grows stronger and intenser, year by year, 



ON GOD 15 

Shall find its equal There — yea more beside — 
Since His love passeth knowledge : 

Deep and wide — 
Of such a fulness that all earthly love 
Must fail to reach unto it — far above 
All human thought, is His love, as the sky 
Is high above this world of ours : 

And I, 
Who only understand, to-day, in part — 
Who cannot read the great eternal Heart, 
As He reads mine, with His unerring sight — 
Some day, shall surely waken in the light 
Of more abundant life : 

Because I know 
God lives, and He is true, my soul shall go 
Out, unafraid, toward the silent shore — 
Into the great Beyond for evermore. 



"A refuge from the storm." — Isa. xxv. 4. 

HpHOU art with me, O my Father : 
A In the storm Thy voice I hear ; 
Through the tempest Thou art speaking, 
Gently hushing all my fear. 

Hark ! the thunder rolls around us ; 

See ! the lightning gilds the sky ; 
Still I hear a voice that whispers 

Through the darkness, " It is I ! " 



16 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



THE WAYS OF GOD. 

| CANNOT understand ; about my path 
A Chill mists are clinging darkly, and my feet 
On rough stones stumble ; all this life of mine 
And all these lives around me seem to be 
Wrapt in deep mystery : I stretch my hands 
To tear the veil apart, and yet there comes 
No light — no answer to my questioning. 

Say not that it is easy to believe 
In the unerring wisdom of our God : 
It is not easy save to those who see 
No lives except their own — who tread them- 
selves 
A smooth bright way, and, since they find no 

cloud 
Of sorrow there, say blindly, " God is love." 
It is not easy to the hearts that break 
Beneath their loads of lifelong misery 
Or days of weariness and nights of pain — 
Not easy to the one who kneels beside 
The grave wherein his best and dearest lies, 
And dares not meet the coming days alone ; 
It is not easy, standing face to face 
With all the awful, untold force of s'n. 
I cannot close my eyes — my ears — i y heart ; 
Sin is around me always — everywhere. 
I wonder — O, I wonder oftentimes, 
And lift a question always answerless ; — 



ON GOD 17 

Why does not God, almighty as He is, 
Bring to an end this reign of terror now ? — 
Or harder still, how came it so to be 
That not a life in all this world of His 
Can journey from the cradle to the tomb 
Untouched by sin — that our inheritance 
Throughout all ages has been this — the sin — 
The sin which not a power on earth can crush, 
This sin — the curse of all the human race. 
There is no answer, though I lift my eyes 
To read His Face ; He draws a veil between, 
And seems to answer only this, "Not yet," 
And leaves me groping in the darkness still. 
Why is He silent ? — Am I wronging Him ? — 
I would but justify Him in the sight 
Of those who judge Him harshly, falsely — not 
That He is changed by any thoughts of ours 
Or less Himself — the pure — the true — the just — 
Because we fail to read His ways aright ; 
And I am human, and this heart of mine 
Is thrilled by pity and intense desire 
For all my brethren, and I know so well 
The awful sadness of the search for love 
In such strange revelations of Himself 
And such strange ways of His as some have 
seen. 

• • • • • 

Out of the mists a Hand is stretched to me — 
A Hand for my sake wounded — and I turn 
From mystery and questioning and doubt 
To kneel before the Christ ; it is enough ; 



t8 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I can believe in Him ; I can believe 

The story of the Cross — the world's new hope-— . 

Her life, the purchase of His death ; I know 

That He is real and true, though all around 

Seems like a troubled dream wherein men stand 

Bewildered, helpless, hopeless ; yet in Him 

Lies the grand secret of eternal rest ; 

For though the tempests of our wild unrest 

Have raged around this Rock, and all the 

power 
Of human intellects that would not bow 
Before the Man Christ Jesus — ay, and all 
The stronger powers of darkness have been 

joined 
To hurl Him from His place — He stands to- 
day 
Unmoved, unchanged within the reach of all, 
With outstretched hands and tender voice, and 

calls 
To us who far off in the shadows grope 
For light : "I am the Way — the Truth — the 
Life." 



" The light of the knowledge of the glory of God 
in the face of Jesus Christ." — 2 Cor. iv. 6. 

^OW we see Thee; now we know Thee; 

now we love Thee, O our God ! 
Since we could not reach Thy heaven, Thou 
Thyself our earth hast trod ; 



ON GOD 19 

Since we stumbled at Thy greatness — could not 

stand before thy Throne — 
Lo ! as Man in mortal weakness, now Thou 

comest to Thine own. 

In the tender face of Jesus we can read Thy 

heart at last ; 
All the love and all the patience, hidden from 

us in the Past, 
Shine to-day across our pathway, through the 

Life which stands between, 
And our eyes, unveiled for ever, see in Him the 

great Unseen. 



" He careth for you." — 1 Pet. v. 7. 

' I *HINK not in thine hour of sorrow, 
A Soul, that thou art left alone ; — 
God Himself is still thy Keeper ; 
All thy ways to Him are known. 

Not a cloud that falls around thee — 
Not a tear that dims thine eye, 

By thy Father is forgotten — 
Not a prayer of thine passed by. 

Only tell Him all thy story, 

Hopeless though it seem to be ; — 

Thou art in His holy keeping ; — 
He will surely care for thee. 



20 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



"Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy 
youth." — Eccles. xii. i. 

TN the days of thy youth remember Him — 

In the days when thy heart is free — 
Ere thine eyes with the mists of the years grow 
dim 
And the clouds overshadow thee — 

Lest the chains of the world thy soul enslave, 
And- thine arm lose its power to fight — 

Lest thou sink at last to a hopeless grave — 
To the gloom of eternal night. 

In the days of thy youth He calleth thee, 
He would make thee His own to-day ; 

In the arms of His love thy rest should be, 
In the print of His feet thy way. 

He would lift thee above the storms of life 

To abide in His secret place, 
Far away from the sound of earthly strife, 

In the shining of His own face. 

It is now in the joy and hope and light, 

In the dawn of this life of thine, 
While thy spirit is glad and earth is bright, 

And the sunbeams around thee shine. 

It is now that His heart in thine would wake 
The response that He yearns to win — 

To the love which has suffered for thy sake, 
To the love which has borne thy sin. 



ON GOD 21 



WANDERING. 

T F thou art far away from Him — 

* If there are clouds between His life and 

thine, 
And through the shadows cold and dim 
No longer now the stars of promise shine — 

If all the joys of yesterday, 
And all the shining of thy Father's face, 

Seem to have faded from thy way, 
And only earth's vain pleasures fill their 
place — 

Yet know, O Soul, He changes not, 
But thou hast changed toward Him ; thy feet 
trod 
A path He never chose ; thy lot 
Was cast with earthly friends and not with 
God. 

He is the same — unchanged in all 
His tender love and care for thee, as when 

Thy first glad answer met His call ; 
But thou art not the same to Him as then. 

Return unto thy rest, O Soul, 
And thou shalt find Him waiting to forgive — 

With power again to make thee whole — 
Again to bid thee in His presence live. 



22 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



"His judgments." — Ps. cxlvii. 20. 

/^•OD is not man — that in the day 

Of His appearing He should say- 
To us, concerning each mistake 
Which we — through helpless blindness — make, 
" Ye should have better understood 
And known the evil from the good ; 
Ye should have traced the guiding light, 
And not have wandered from the right." 
He reads — and very truly reads — 
Our motives under all our deeds : 
And if, with purpose pure, to-day 
I seek — but seem to miss my way, 
Yet am I, in the courts above, 
Judged by the perfect law of love ! 



"The same — yesterday — to-day — for ever."— 
Heb. xiii. 8. 

ALL things change around us ; day by day, 
x Dear, familiar voices die away ; — 
Gentle lives, that used to touch our own, 
Pass beyond us to the land unknown, 
And the winding pathway of the years 
Leads us often through a vale of tears. 

Only One, of all our hearts love best, 
Stands unchanged beside us — bears the test 



ON GOD 23 

Of our deepest helplessness and need — 
Bends to take our empty hands, and lead 
From our loss, and loneliness, and pain, 
To the wealth of His eternal gain. 

Only One is true, and, as we turn 
To His perfect love, at last we learn, 
How the things of earth, that used to seem 
All our highest good, were but a dream, 
And, although our cherished idols fall, 
How, in finding God, we find our all. 



" The Father . . . with whom is no variable- 
ness." — Jas. i. 17. 

T KNOW He is not farther from my life 
*■ In these dark hours of restlessness and strife 
Than in the golden light of yesterday — 
Though, as I trod awhile that flowery way, 
He seemed so near that I could almost see 
The shining of His face ! My soul, set free 
From all distracting thought, and doubt, and 

fear, 
Amid the holy stillness, seemed to hear 
The voice that whispered, "Peace," but now I 

seem 
As one who wakens from a pleasant dream, 
And finds himself left in the dark — alone. 
I feel no hand outstretched to reach my own ; 



24 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And through the silence comes no voice divine 
To say that still this helpless life of mine 
Is in my Father's keeping : Yet I know, 
Though restless waves may toss me to and fro, 
No change can reach my Lord; no cloud can 

dim 
His perfect love for all who trust in Him. 
What shall I fear ? Though all my joys depart, 
Though I no longer feel within my heart 
The sunshine of His smile, yet He is here — 
The same to-day as yesterday, and near 
As when I felt His presence at my side : 
The mists that roll between can only hide — 
Not dim — the light of God : I know that 

still, 
Alike through calm and storm — through good 

and ill, 
Though oftentimes unfelt their power may be, 
The everlasting arms are holding me, 
And He Who never wearies — never sleeps — 
My fearless soul in perfect safety keeps. 



"The Lord bless thee, and keep thee." — Num. 
vi. 24. 

VJTOD keep you, Dear ! 
And grant that, as you tread life's onward way, 
His presence may be with you, day by day, 
Nearer than all your nearest — dearer far 
Than all your dearest are. 



ON GOD 25 

God keep you, De.ar ! 
Fold you in safety where His own abide — 
Calm, unafraid, whatever may betide ; — 
And in His changeless love and tenderness — 
Uphold, and guide, and bless. 



ON FRIENDSHIP 



27 



FRIENDSHIP. 

TT is well that when storm-clouds are dark 
A overhead, 

And rough and hard is the path that we tread, 
There are beautiful friendships to brighten our 
way, 

And hearts as true as the light of the day. 

O the world is not empty and dreary and lone 
When hearts like these are in touch with our 
own, 
And we cannot be poor, though no silver or 
gold 
Or gems be ours, while such treasures we hold. 



"At eventide it shall be light." — Zech. xiv. 7. 

^"pHERE is no sadness in life's eventide 
** When God is there: His hand doth 

gently guide 
The weary pilgrims on their homeward way — 
Toward the land of everlasting day. 

29 



30 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Tired eyes, that droop beneath the weight of 

years, 
Look up ! Beyond these mists of pain and 

tears 
The lights of home shine forth to welcome 

thee, 
And soon the King's own beauty thou shalt see. 

Sad hearts, that dream of all the joyous Past, 
Think of the dawning day — so near at last, 
The bliss that will be thine when thou shalt 

meet 
Thy loved and lost ones on the golden street. 

God is so close to thee ! Canst thou not hear 
The voice that speaks to calm thy restless fear ? 
Shall He not lead thee safely down the hill, 
As He hath led thee always ? Trust Him still. 

Life stretches out before thee — not behind : 
Look on — not backward ; so thy soul shall find 
Green pastures in old age — a pleasant place, 
Bright with the shining of Thy Father's face. 



FAREWELL. 

/^\UR hands meet and our eyes ; our voices 

^^ speak 

The last sweet words of parting, knowing well 



ON FRIENDSHIP 31 

That, though our lives in such true harmony- 
Have blended each with each, yet nevermore 
Through all the earth-life they may meet again : 
You wonder that I smile — that I am strong ; 
You know not that the sorrow of to-day 
Has lost its bitterness, because I hold 
The memory of friendship in the Past, 
With you, whose aims and hopes are one with 

mine, 
To be a glorious promise which ere long 
Shall find fulfilment in the perfect life. 

Would that the power were mine to tell you now 
How each new happiness which comes to me 
Is but a promise of some fairer thing, 
Hereafter to be mine, within my soul 
But dimly comprehended yet ; and how, 
As each is lost, Love may not mourn beside 
A hopeless grave, since Faith with steadfast eye 
Looks out beyond the clouds which lie between, 
And sees its resurrection from the dead, 
And Hope lights all the upward path for me. 



IN HIS KEEPING. 

I THINK of you at morn and noon and eve, 
And in the stillness of the quiet night, 
When memories about my spirit weave 
The old, sweet pictures lost to touch and sight. 



32 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I linger on the old familiar way, 
And seem again your face and form to see 
And hear your voice : I think of you to-day, 
As you, I know, my Dearest, think of me. 

hands that fain would lie in mine once 

more, 

1 feel my own responsive, and my eyes, 
That strain to reach you on that distant shore, 
Know that in yours the same deep longing lies. 

And I could never bear the silence, Dear, 
That falls between us, but for this ; — I know, 
Though your path lies afar and mine still 

here, 
Yet neither from the sight of God can go. 

I lift your life to Him through all the day, 
And strength for every hour of need implore ; 
And in the dusk I kneel again and pray, 
That at the end our ways may meet once more. 



MEMORIES. 

V7"ES, the sunny days are here once more, 
* Changed in some way, though I know not 

how, 
For the skies are just as cloudless now 
And the flowers as fragrant as before. 



ON FRIENDSHIP 33 

Ah ! but there are dear ones far away ; 
There are friends who do not come to me ; 
There are faces that I may not see, 
And I miss them everywhere to-day. 

• • • • • 

Will the sunshine always take my heart 
Backward to the happy days of yore ? 
Will the summer days be evermore 
Incomplete because I miss their part. 

Nay, I hold a faith which bids me rise 

To a perfect life, beyond, above, 

Where my hands shall clasp the hands I love — 

Where no shadow of a sorrow lies. 



TIME— THE HEALER. 

/^ALL him not harsh who with such kindly 
^ touch 

Lays his soft hand upon the aching heart — 
That mourns its loved and lost, or some sweet 

joy 

Of olden days — and bids its pain depart. 

He is not harsh, but gentle ; day by day, 
Unconsciously, with slow yet certain tread, 
He leads from hopelessness to joy again, 
And clouds are changed for sunshine over- 
head. 



34 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I feel his hand upon my heart to-night — 
My heart that clung about its bitter grief 
For voices hushed ; the wound is healing now ; 
I am not weeping ; Time has brought relief. 

Not that I love my lost ones less than then — 
Not that my life has grown once more complete — 
For still I wait to clasp their hands again ; — 
I wait to hear the coming of their feet — 

And know that if long years must pass between, 
And all my life henceforth be spent apart, 
Then nevermore on earth shall come to me 
Such happiness as once possessed my heart. 

Yet slowly, patiently, as in a dream, 
Time led me step by step — I know not how — 
To quiet places, and the storm is past, 
And peace is in my heart and on my brow. 



THE UNKNOWN WAY. 

Sometime— sometime— 

Your heart that will not hear His voice to-day — 
That turns unheeding from the outstretched 

hand, 
Which fain would hide you in His secret 

place, 
Will crave a shelter from the storm of life. 



ON FRIENDSHIP 35 

Sometime — sometime — 
The clouds must fall about you, and your feet 
On rough paths falter, and your eyes grow dim 
With hopeless tears : What then ? If it should be 
Too late to find Him — if His hand, grown tired 
Of waiting through the long and weary years, 
Be turned against you, and His heart no more 
A refuge offer you, how will you find 
The pathway to the gate of heaven alone ? — 
And who shall comfort you, and who shall be 
Your friend when earthly friendships shall have 
passed ? 

You turn a deaf ear ; you are satisfied 

With love and sunshine and the bright to-day ; 

You care not for the clouds that lie afar ; 

You dread no unknown path : I would not dim 

Your gladness, Dearest ; nay — my heart is 

glad 
In your joy ; only I, who know the way, 
And know how soon the things of earth must 

die, 
Must needs desire for you, whose life is bound 
So closely with my own, a resting-place, 
A safe, sure haven in His heart of love. 
I would that you could know Him ; never- 
more 
The fairest things of earth, which at the best 
Are but faint shadows of the things of heaven, 
Would charm your captive heart from Him 
again. 






36 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



MY "OLD FRIENDS." 

[DO not think of them as old ! 

Hearts are not always old, you know, 
When with white hair and eyes grown 

dim, 
And weary limbs and footsteps slow, 
Men journey down the hill of life 
Some steps before us — having trod 
Heights which we also soon must tread, 
If we would view the gates of God — 
As now they view them — close at hand : 
I think of them as having grown 
To higher knowledge, faith, and love, 
Than I have ever felt or known — 
As bending down to help and bless, 
Not through the mists of coming night, 
But from a fuller life than ours 
And from the dawn of clearer light. 

I would that I might learn to live 

As God has taught them through the years, 

By His wise discipline of pain 

And by the bitterness of tears. 

I cannot think of them as old — 
Nor feel that they are far away — 
These dearest, truest friends of mine, 
Through whom God speaks to me to-day ; 



ON FRIENDSHIP 37 

They have not changed, save to have lost 
The charm of youth ; — yet is it loss ? — 
Who for such beauty of the soul, 
Would fear to bear so light a cross ? 



THE FAREWELL. 



A: 



^H, Dear ! I will not weep — 
Although you lie so silently asleep. 

You are not lost to me ; 
Somewhere, on some glad morning yet to be, 
Your hand will clasp my own again ; — 
And I ? — I shall forget the pain 
Of this sad parting and the days between. 
• . . . . 

I said I would not weep : 
Forgive me if the cross has been 
Too heavy for my soul to keep 
Unbroken silence — if I dare not meet 
The lonely years, and my reluctant feet, 

So soon grown tired, turn back 
To tread with you the old familiar track. 
And yet — and yet — 
I must be strong ; I must forget 

My loneliness and care : 
God saw that earth had grown too fair ! 

While you were here to hold my love, 
I could not set it on the things above ; 



38 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I could not feel His hand upon my brow ; 
I could not hear Him — as I hear Him 
now — 

To hearts that grieve 
For loved and lost ones, say, " If ye believe 
That Christ has died and risen, even so 
They also who sleep in Him shall arise 
To meet Him in the skies." 

To-day, I know 
That you are mine as in the Past — my 

own — 
Not changed in any wise, save to have grown 
More beautiful and pure on that fair shore, 

Where pain shall touch your life no more. 
The rest is hidden ; my earth-blinded eyes 
Would pierce the gloom your face to 
see ; — 

It may not be, 
Until I too, with glad surprise, 
Shall stand with you beyond the night 
And, in the great revealing light 
Of God's own presence, learn at last 
The meaning of the Past — 
His meaning, when He whispers through my 
tears, 
" This is not death, but only sleep," 
And bids me trust His power to keep ; — 
His meaning, when He reaches from above, 
And seems to blight the beauty of the years, 
Yet bids me still believe that He is Jove ! 



ON FRIENDSHIP 39 

A little while the darkling mists shall roll 
Between your life and mine ; yet, by and by, 
The clouds shall part, 
And hand in hand, 
And heart to heart, 
Within the glory of the sinless land 
Our lives shall meet again, and I shall know 
That you have not forgotten, Dear, 
The path we trod together here — 
The lonely life you left below — 
The empty hands that still would seem 
To cling to you as in a dream. 

Ah, Dear ! I will believe to-day 
That this is best for you and me ; 
I know not how ; I cannot see 
Why God has taken you away ; 
Yet — knowing even as I know 
Here, in the shadows, that His will 
Is always right — I can be still, 
And trust Him so. 



THROUGH THE MISTS. 

T) ESTLESS years that come and go, 
■^ Touch them gently, lightly now ; 
Let no breath of winter's snow 
Linger yet on cheek and brow. 



4 o A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Ah ! my love would stand between, 
As the mists begin to lie 
Where the summer light has been 
Always in the days gone by. 

Father, Mother, dearest — mine — 
Would that love might hold you fast- 
Closer yet about you twine — 
Keep you still as in the Past ! 

Yet my heart shall keep for you 
All her choicest treasure-store ; 
Come what may, I will be true 
I will love you more and more. 

Let me hold your hands in mine, 
Meet with you the coming night ; 
Who shall speak of life's decline? — 
Lo, the great Beyond is bright ! 



SYMPATHY. 

I* O R. the sake of those 
Whose lives are linked so closely with my own 
That our desires and feelings seem to be 
As one, and all our hopes and thoughts 
So interwoven that the joy 

Which thrills one heart finds always its response 
Within the other and their pain 






ON FRIENDSHIP 41 

Is also mine and I must feel with them 

Their loss and failure and the clouds which fall 

Across their gladness — for the sake of these 

I am in touch with all who day by day 

My pathway cross ; as I remember these, 

My best and dearest, I can lift my hand 

To bear another's burden or to smooth 

A hard, rough path ; and this great love of mine 

Is teaching me so well to understand 

The needs of other lives — the joys and cares 

By which they rise and fall — their hopes and 

dreams — 
The disappointment and the loss they feel — 
The weariness of overcrowded days — 
Of bearing silently, and all unseen 
By human eyes, a weight of daily care — 
The voiceless longing and the vain desire. 

• • • • • 

So One is leading me by His own path, 
And teaching me, as He Himself has learnt, 
To do the highest, noblest work on earth — 
To be a servant and to minister, 
As He Himself has ministered, to all. 



MY GREETING. 



W« 



OULD I might stand 
Beside you — hold within my own your hand, 
And hear your voice, and in your sweet eyes see 
Once more the story of your love for me. 



42 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Yet while our ways 
Are parted, and the hush of many days 
Between us lies, my heart, in friendship true, 
Goes out across the distance, Dear, to you — 

And breathes a prayer 
That God may hold you always in His care, 
And fill your life with His own peace and rest, 
And give you always what is truly best. 



UNEXPRESSED. 

' I VHERE are some thoughts too deep — too 

A beautiful 
For human lips to speak or hands to write — 
Too near that dim, mysterious borderland 
Where joy and sadness in one rapture meet 
And mingle in our hearts ; we only feel 
The mighty power within us, knowing not 
If it be pain or gladness — only this, 
That we are breathing in the air of heaven. 

There is no music half so sweet as that 
Which thrills within the true musician's soul ; 
There is no picture half so beautiful 
As that which lived within the mind of him 
Who sought to paint his thought, that other 

eyes 
With him might share it ; and I truly know 



ON FRIENDSHIP 43 

That no interpretation shall be found 

Of those unwritten poems in my heart 

Until the day when God shall give to me 

A stronger power than words — these words 

which fail 
To give them full expression ; even so 
When we would tell our love, our lips are still, 
Because they have not learnt a form of words 
To utter all its depth and all its strength. 

O gentle hands that hold my own to-day — 

eyes that look so tenderly on mine, 
And lips that make such music in my life — 
My heart leaps up to meet the love I read 

In touch and look and voice — yet finds no 

power 
Wherewith to make response — wherewith to 

tell, 
Or prove by sacrifice, my answering love ; 
Yet O, believe that never proof of yours 
Can touch unrecognised this life of mine. 

1 pray that God may teach me by and by 
To speak the thanks I feel so deeply now 
For all, that your dear love has been to me. 



ON SURRENDER 



45 



THE BETTER PART. 

OTRIVE not so much to Do, but learn to Be, 
^ That God Himself may Do His will 

through thee. 
Better it is for thee to please Him so 
Than by such ceaseless running to and fro 
On errands which thine own blind heart hath 

planned ; 
Better to lay in His thy restless hand 
And let Him choose thy task, or keep it there 
Inactive, if He will : to do or bear, 
His choice is best : I know in His great plan 
That God can find a part for every man. 



THE UNGRIEVED SPIRIT. 

"The thing we have to look for is the ungrieved 
Presence of the Holy Ghost. God anointed the Lord 
Jesus by the Holy Ghost, and gave not His Spirit by 
measure unto Him, for He was obedient unto death. 
He gives Him to us in the measure that we are 
obedient, working out what God works in us — to 
will and do His good pleasure." 

| KNOW He dwells in me ; I dare not 

* doubt 

The Word, nor question, though it seems to me 

47 



48 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

So wonderful a truth, that oftentimes 

I scarce can bear the knowledge — I who seem 

So utterly unworthy of a look 

From God's pure eyes, who seem so often 

bound 
By earthly fetters and so tenderly 
To cling to human love : He dwells in me ; — 
The promise of the Father is fulfilled; — 
The temple of the Holy Ghost am I. 
Yet, is it mine to know that, day by day, 
Ungrieved He dwells in me — that not a word 
Nor deed — nor secret thought — nor vain desire 
Of mine is lying like a cloud between 
And hindering His perfect work in me ? 
May I look fearlessly into the face 
Of God, and know that He is satisfied ? 
O not by measure to His Son He gave 
The Holy Ghost — since even unto death 
Christ was obedient ; to the uttermost 
He drained the cup of bitterness, and trod — 
His face turned steadfastly toward the cross — 
Life's darkest pathway and the stormy wave ; 
So, measureless, in all His mighty power 
And zeal and love, the Spirit wrought in Him. 
Only in us, who dare not follow where 
The way is hardest — dare not lay our all 
Upon the altar — fear to drink the cup 
He holds within His hand, the Spirit dwells 
By measure, silently and without power ; 
And when we speak or act, and other eyes 
Look on our lives, they fail to find Him there — 



ON SURRENDER 49 

Hear not His voice — feel not His power, and 

seem 
To see but empty temples ; — only we, 
Trembling before His silence, know that still, 
Not wholly quenched, but grieved, He dwells 

within. 



A FAREWELL. 

"Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that 
He will send forth labourers into His harvest." — 
Matt. ix. 38. 

DARE not call you back : have I not 

prayed 
That lives like yours might bear love's sternest 

test, 
And on the altar of their faith be laid ? — 
What then ? — shall I withhold my own — my 

best? 

Nay — go ! Shall I be free to pray aright 
That other hearts may hear the Master's call 
To labour where the harvest fields are white, 
Except as freely I surrender all ? 

God knows the weakness of the hands that cling 
About these human idols, and the pain 
That is the price of every gift we bring — 
The loss through which we find eternal gain. 
4 



50 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

God knows, and He will make me strong to take 
The task that He has given ; so, to-day, 
This is my sacrifice ; for love's sweet sake 
I bid you go ; — the King's command obey. 

And O, be true ! Let your own light so shine, 
That in earth's darkest places it may be 
A bright reflection of the Light divine — 
That in your life the world His life may see. 

His peace be with you always, and the power 
Of His own Spirit all your soul baptize 
With holy, living fire ; and hour by hour, 
Breathe, through your lips, the love that never dies. 

And now, farewell ! God grant that, in the day 
When you and I shall meet at His right hand, 
Beyond the shadows of this earthly way, 
Among His noblest heroes you may stand. 



TRUE CONSECRATION. 



I 



OFFERED Him my eyes, and hands, and 
feet; 

Asked Him to take, and purify, and use 
These for His glory ; yet He asked for more, 
My mind, and will, and intellect, and heart, 
My passions and desires — all — all to be 
Surrendered to Him — only used for Him ! 



ON SURRENDER 51 



IN THE VALLEY OF HUMILIA- 
TION. 

T STRETCHED my hand and gathered of 

A the fruit 

Which graced the tree of knowledge, and I learnt 

Hard lessons — yea, and strove until I solved 

Deep problems, unveiled mysteries, and fought 

And won fierce battles on the field of life ; 

And climbed a hill and on the summit stood, 

Strong in my knowledge and my victory : 

To-night I seem to be a child again ; 

The darkness creeps around me ; I forget 

The things I learnt ; I am as weak as if 

No conquest had been mine. Once more a shroud 

Of mystery about me lies, and nought 

Is left of all on which I used to lean. 

Yet in my weakness and my helplessness 

There comes to me the memory of One 

Who waited while I wandered far astray 

On tangled pathways, which I vainly thought 

Should lead me up to God ; and, as I turn 

To look on Him, He speaks : " I am the Way — 

The Truth — the Life — by Me, if any man 

Will enter in, he shall be saved." And lo ! 

All that I need of wisdom or of power 

Is mine in Him ; His robe of righteousness — 

Albeit I am helpless and undone — 

Thrown over me, has made me fit to stand 

With confidence before His Father's face. 



52 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



" Yet not I." — Gal. ii. 20. 



T: 



HE old earth-life is past ; 
Mine eyes have looked on Jesus crucified ; 

By faith, with Him I died ! 
The life which now I live is His — not 

mine ; 
My power — no longer human, but divine ; 
My will — held captive by His own at last. 



THE SACRIFICE. 

AM not questioning Thy will to-night ; 
I know the gentle hand that leadeth me, 
Strange though the path may sometimes seem to 
be, 

Is always, always right. 



I 



And yet my heart aches as I kneel to pray : 
Thou seest, Father ; still Thou dost not blame ; 
Thou knowest all the weakness of my frame, 
And dost not turn away. 

Thou dost not wonder — understanding all 
The story of our lives — if, while we lay 
Our treasures at Thy feet, or tread some way 
Of darkness at Thy call, 



ON SURRENDER 53 

Yet, being human, we must feel the pain 
Of human parting, human grief and care, 
The weight of every cross we lift, the prayer 
We seem to breathe in vain. 

/ And if, with hearts that linger even yet 
About their idols — if with hands that cling 
Still to the dust, our all to Thee we bring, 
Yet cannot all forget — 

What then? Dost Thou forget, O Heart 
divine, 

That Thou hast learnt the bitterness of tears 

The sorrow of Thy manhood, and the years 
Of weakness that were Thine ? 

Nay ! Thou hast not forgotten, and I know — 
Although the sacrifice is but a part, 
And offered only by a broken heart — 
Thou wilt receive it so : 

I am not questioning ; I only pray — 
Tired and alone, amid the shades of night, 
Where once dear forms stood by me, and the 
light 

Of love shone on my way — 

That Thou wilt bid these restless longings cease, 
And teach me to forget the days that seem 
To cling about me like a broken dream 
That still disturbs my peace. 



54 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Ah ! take my empty hands in Thine, and fill 
My soul with Thy great calm, until I know 
The love that passeth knowledge — learning so 
To understand Thy will. 



"Father, glorify Thy name." — John xii. 28. 

JL/ORD, day by day, 
Let Thine own name be glorified in me, 

And my aim ever be 
To follow where Thou leadest on life's way. 
Let me not falter, though I lift my eyes 

To dark and angry skies, 
Or seem to walk in sorrow and alone, 
Without a human hand to hold my own 
Or voice to cheer 
My loneliness and calm my fear. 
If only Thou be glorified, 

Though by my pain and loss, 
Borne in the shadow of Thy cross, 
Let me seek nought beside. 
Or if Thou lead me where the flowers are bright 
And sunbeams shine, 
Let my heart lift to Thine 
Its joy and light, 
And my desire in all things be the same — 
To glorify Thy name. 



ON DISCIPLINE 



58 



"Unto a perfect man." — Eph. iv. 13. 



I 



.T seems to me 
That from the direst wrecks of human life 
God builds the noblest temples for Himself: 
It is a strange, grand thought ; He bids us pass 
Through deepest shades with all our hopes laid 

low, 
Or through such weary days and nights of pain 
As seem to separate these lives of ours 
From other lives, until we find ourselves 
Without desire for anything on earth, 
Or joy in that which once we counted dear ; 
He breaks the ties which bound us heart to 

heart 
With all we love, and when at last we lie 
Low at His feet, and only see His face, 
And only feel the love on which no change 
Can ever breathe — the patient, deathless love 
Which could not leave us to the life we chose, 
Far off from Him, but led our wandering feet 
By such strange ways as these, to find our rest 
Beyond all change, beyond life's troubled 

dreams — 
He takes our hands and lays in them His gifts, 
57 



58 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Our hopes, and sets them on Himself alone, 
Our empty hearts, and fills them with His 

power, 
Then sees in us some likeness to Himself. 



THE AWAKENING. 

1 S life enough for you ? — 
I mean, can you be satisfied 
With nothing else beside 

The bright To-day, and afterwards — To- 
morrow, 
And nought beyond their happiness and sorrow ? 

I could not dare to fall asleep to-night, 
Not knowing if my eyes should see the light 
Of morning break again, but that I know — 
Beyond these restless years that come and 

.2°' 

All interwoven with their peace and strife — 

Sunlight and shade — there is another life : 
I know — I know — that death is not to be 
The end of life — of all — to you and me. 

Here we must love and lose, or love in vain — 
Must dream of happiness, and wake to pain — 
Must crush our dearest hopes beneath our 

feet — 
Must toil, yet never find our work complete. 



ON DISCIPLINE 59 

Somewhere — dear hands shall clasp our own 

once more, 
And hearts that touched our hearts long years 

before 
Shall come to meet us in the morning land ; 
And there, at last, our souls shall understand 
How, though He hid His meaning from our 

sight, 
Yet God was always true and always right ; 
And how, though smiles were often changed 

for tears, 
Along this tangled pathway of the years, 
Yet only so these lives of yours and mine 
Have caught the likeness of the Life divine. 



" When He hath tried me, I shall come forth as 
gold." — Job xxiii. 10. 



G« 



'OD knew best ! 
The path I chose, the path you chose for me, 
Was beautiful ; my heart was glad and free ; 
I saw no joy beyond the bright to-day — 
No light above the sunshine on my way. 

I heard His voice : He bade me follow Him ; 
Earth's sweet flowers faded and its lights grew 

dim ; 
I turned aside reluctantly, to tread 
Amid the shadows where His footsteps led, 
And failed to see the kindness in His heart, 
And wondered that He called me thus apart. 



60 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Yet He knew best ! I know it now ; I know 
That I have learnt life's truest lessons so — 
Have reached to happiness that will not die, 
But grow and strengthen as the days go by ; 
And though fair hopes lie shattered at my side, 
And broken idols — though my God denied 
The gifts for which I prayed, yet now I see 
That all He gave was truly best for me. 



ON GUIDANCE 



01 



THE WORD OF GOD. 

I FIND a Guide 
That faileth not, and in its clear, strong light, 
Through noontide dangers and the gloom of 
night, 

Calm, fearless I abide — 
Thy word, O God, 
The word by which the saints of olden 
days 

Directed all their ways 
And in the footprints of their Master trod. 
Thy word is still the same, 
Amid the world's vain show 
Of things that come and go, 
As changeless as Thine own almighty name. 
Here is my law ; I dare not look away 
Where waves of dark confusion roll — 
Where creeds and doctrines meet my 
soul 

And seek to lead astray ; 
It is enough for me, 
While changeful minds around me turn 
From truth to error — here to learn 
Thy mind — Thy will to see. 

63 



64 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



"He knoweth the way." — Job xxiii. 10. 

TJ E knoweth ! Take His hand, 
•■- A And let Him be thy guide ; 
Pass onward through the unknown land 
With Jesus at thy side. 

So shalt thou calmly go, 
Kept by His tender love, 
Where sunbeams on thy pathway glow 
Or dark clouds hang above. 

Safe shall thy refuge be 
Above earth's restless strife ; 
For while Jehovah keepeth thee 
No harm can touch thy life. 



"Fear not." — Isa. xliii. 5. 

"CLEAREST thou the way before thee? 
A Seemeth it to thee 
That the journey all untrodden 
Dark and rough must be ? 

Shrink not from the dread to-morrow ; 

Take thy rest to-night ; — 
God may show a brighter pathway 

In the morning light. 



ON GUIDANCE 65 



" The Lord hath been mindful of us : He will 
bless us." — Ps. cxv. 12. 

A/f EMORIES of all our Father's leading 
*- Through the countless perils of the 

way — 
His constraining love and tender pleading, 
When our wayward footsteps sought to stray — 

Memories of all His loving kindness 

Through the shadowed yesterdays of life — 

Shine to-day across our human blindness — 
Give us strength to meet to-morrow's strife. 

Always after weariness and sadness, 
And the darkest mystery of night, 

There has dawned a day of rest and glad- 
ness ; — 
There has come to us a ray of light ! 

And we know that while our Lord is guiding, 

Even desert places must be fair ; 
In the hollow of His hand abiding, 

We can leave the Future to His care. 

Always through the pathways dark and lonely 

He has safely led us in the Past ; 
Therefore will we trust in Jesus only ; 

He shall lead His children home at last. 



66 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



BY THE RIGHT WAY. 

CHADOWS are hiding the noonday sun 
^ Father, is this Thy way ? 
Is it the only path which leads 

Unto the perfect day ? 
Secrets which I may not understand 

Rise from the misty light ; 
Only I know that Thy gentle hand 

Hides these things from my sight. 
Trusting my life to Thy tender care — 

Strong in Thy changeless love, 
Safely I traverse the road which leads 

Up to the home above. 



"I will guide thee." — Ps. xxxii. 8. 

CUFFER not my feet to stumble : 

^ Father, even as I pray, 

Comes Thy promise, " I will guide thee," 
And I know I cannot stray 

While Thy strength upholds my weakness- 
While Thy hand directs my way. 



"For He knoweth our frame." — Ps. ciii. 14. 

HpAKE the sunshine of to-day ; — 
*- Leave the coming sorrow ; 
God will surely make a way 
Through each dark to-morrow. 



ON GUIDANCE 67 

Do not let a thought of dread 
Cloud your path with sadness ; 

While amid life's flowers you tread, 
Thank Him for the gladness. 

O remember, restless heart, 

God is always guiding ; 
You can bid all fear depart 

In His strength abiding. 

Leave the future in His hands ; 

Wait in trustful meekness ; 
God will choose ! He understands 

All our human weakness. 



HE LEADETH. 

/^FTENTIMES our watchful eyes 
^-^ Seek to pierce the veil that lies 
Over all our future way ; 
Yet we only hold to-day — 
Only see lire's joy and care, 
As we meet them unaware. 

Is it not enough to know, 

For the years that come and go, 

That, whatever may befall, 

God is over-ruling all — 

And through all the way unknown 

He will walk beside His own ? 



68 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



HITHERTO HATH THE LORD 
HELPED US. 

TF the storm-clouds had not parted, Dear — 
-■■ If the sunshine had not come again — 
You might look for darkness all the year ; — 
You might hope for nothing else but rain. 

If God had forgotten to provide 
All He promised for your need to-day, 
Then you might more justly doubt your Guide- 
But He has not failed you all the way ! 

He who, through the yesterdays of life, 
Proved Himself to be your truest Friend, 
Will not leave you in to-morrow's strife — 
Will be with you even to the end. 



"A refuge." — Isa. xxv. 4. 

T KNOW not where the years my bark may 
A bear, 

But this I surely know : 
Beyond the shelter of Thy love and care 

Thou wilt not let me go. 

O Thou who with a strong, unerring hand 

Dost rule life's restless sea, 
Guide through the night of darkness to the land 

The souls who trust in Thee. 



ON GUIDANCE 69 



" Commit thy way unto the Lord." — Ps. xxxvii. 5. 

T EAVE in the hands of thy Father 
-^ All that is yet unknown ; 
Know that He will not forsake thee ; 
Thou shalt not walk alone. 

Over the paths that are rugged 
He will thy footsteps guide ; 

Only be patient and trust Him ; 
Only in Him abide. 

That which His hand hath withholden, 

Seek not to do or be ; 
So shall He choose in His wisdom 

All that is best for thee. 



"Take no thought for the morrow." — Matt. vi. 34. 

Z^ 1 OD would not have us think about to- 
^-* morrow 

As of some cloud that lies 

Before our anxious eyes, 
And fills our hearts with dread of coming sorrow. 

How can we tell ? The sun may shine more 
brightly 

Than it has shone before ; — 
I know life holds in store 
More good than ill for those who view it rightly. 



70 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And He, whose hand is always wisely guiding, 
Can only give His best 
To those who wait and rest — 

Through all life's need in His great love 
confiding. 



"These three." — i Cor. xiii. 13. 

OVE whispers through the gloom of night, 
-^ And Hope goes forth with outstretched 

hand 
And eyes aglow, to where the light 
Shines dimly from the unknown land. 

And fearless Faith, day after day, 
Bids us in trustful patience wait, 
And gladly lights the lonely way 
Which leads us to the golden gate. 



ON SERVICE 



n 



" Not your own." — i Cor. vi. 19. 

T_J AS He written on thy heart 
His new name ? 
Let Him claim 

All thou hast and all thou art. 



Lips that once have praised the King, 

Evermore 

Must adore ; 
Evermore His songs must sing. 



Hands that once have touched His 
own, 

At His call 

Leaving all, 
Must be used for Him alone. 



Not thine own, but Christ's art thou ; 

Day by day 

Choose His way ; 

Follow in His footsteps now. 
73 



74 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



" Faithful in that which is least. " — Luke xvi. 10. 

A/fY mission is to do the work which lies 
■*- A Close to my hand to-day — not to despise 
Life's little things, but patiently to take 
Each task my Father gives, and for His sake, 
With undivided aim and single eye, 
Perform it faithfully — not asking why 
No higher path of service may be mine — 
Why only as a rushlight I may shine — 
But seeking in all things His will to see, 
And leaving Him to choose my way for me. 

It may be that my Lord will lead me so 
Through quiet, winding paths, with footsteps 

slow, 
To broader fields of toil, for which His hand 
Is training me to-day ; He may have planned, 
If in the " least " my life His eye shall please, 
To bid me serve by greater deeds than these. 



TRUE SERVICE. 

T^\ O something ! Though your chosen task 
*^* may lie 

Away beyond your reach — beyond your power, 

Yet other fields of labour stand close by : 

Do something ; do not waste this golden hour. 



ON SERVICE 75 

Do something ! Stand not idle all the day 

With eyes uplifted to the hills afar ; 

God bids us serve Him on this earthly way, 
And not to seek Him in some distant star. 

Do something ! Do it now ! The work which 

lies 

Close to your hand this moment is the best 

His choice for you — the choice that must be 

wise ; — 
Then do your duty, and forget the rest. 

I know that only so, the restless fire 
Of vain ambition shall grow cold and dim, 
And from its ashes spring the pure desire 
To render love's true sacrifice to Him. 



"A servant of God."— Jas. i. i. 



W ] 



'HAT am I but a servant in whose hand 
Are tools which He hath fashioned — 
wherewith I 
May render faithful service, if I will, 

Or mar His perfect plan for me ? My Lord 

My Master, let my will be as Thine own, 
So that Thy mighty hand through me may work. 
Thou knowest all the weakness of the heart 
That fain would serve Thee well, yet finds itself 
So slow to catch the spirit of Thine own. 



76 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

O strengthen me, my Lord, and let Thy power 
Be poured upon me ; so that all I do 
Henceforth may glorify Thy holy name. 



" Inasmuch." — Matt. xxv. 40. 

D ECAUSE the Master is not here, with His 

*^ own hand to-day, 

To feed the hungry multitudes who throng life's 

busy way, 
He gives the task to you and me ; He bids us 

hear their cry ; 
He says that if we turn from them, we also pass 

Him by. 

Our eyes are blind ; we only see an outcast at 

our door ; 
Yet said He not Himself that they who feed 

and clothe His poor 
Give unto Him ? — Then day by day for such a 

royal Guest 
Shall we not bring with willing hands our 

choicest and our best ? 



"Your reasonable service." — Rom. xii. 1. 

P\0 thou thy work ! Let not thy hands hang 
^^^ helpless at thy side 
Because thou canst not save the souls for whom 
the Lamb has died. 



ON SERVICE 77 

This is not thy concern but His — thine to obey 

His call — 
To yield thy life for Him to use — thy time — 

thy gifts and all : 
Then shall thy consecrated life be filled with 

power divine ; 
Then shall His voice speak through thy lips, 

and His hand work by thine. 



"The poor ye have always with you." — Matt. 
xxvi. ii. 

ARE they not with us always ? Day by 
rY day 

They pass beside us on life's busy way, 
With pale, sad faces, marred by lifelong care, 
And forms which droop beneath the weight 

they bear, 
And weary feet, which still must onward go, 
Though with no conscious end in view, and 

though 
They see no rest before them — save the sleep 
Which comes at last to all who watch and weep. 

Who knows the awful fight they wage with sin 
In all its deadliest forms ? And when some 

win, 
Who smiles or praises ? Others fail, and then 
There are enough among their fellow-men 



78 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

To blame, and only He who knows the wrong 
Gives judgment for the helpless — not the strong, 
Who might have saved them when the waves 

were high, 
But let them sink, and would not heed their cry. 

How can we know — who pray for daily bread 
Beside our tables with abundance spread, 
And have not learnt to hunger — what these bear, 
Who always lift to God the self-same prayer, 
From lowest depths of misery and pain, 
With faith and hope that tremble in the strain — 
Impassioned by the greatness of their need, 
And cold and hungry even while they plead ? 

" God pity them," we pray, and wonder why 
He gives to us, yet seems to pass them by ; 
We miss the truth that, from His treasure-store, 
He gives enough for all, and even more — 
But there are unjust stewards, who withhold 
More than their lawful portion of the gold 
He bade them use for Him — yet even dare 
To speak of those whom they defraud, in 
prayer ! 

Not that men err in prayer for them — save 

then — 
When God has given a full supply, and when 
They fail to pass it on — too blind to see 
That they themselves must answer their own 

plea ! 



ON SERVICE 79 

Dare we to offer only pity — prayer — 
Without a helping hand outstretched to bear 
The burden under which they falter ? Nay — 
From such a mockery God turns away. 

Is it not true that in His poor again 

Christ comes to us, and as we ease their pain 

We minister to Him ? Then let us take 

A task so glorified for His dear sake. 

For what is sacrifice ? And what is loss ? 

What is the heavy burden of a cross, 

If it be borne for Him by whom alone 

All life's most precious gifts became our own ? 

" Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the 
least of these, My brethren, ye have done it unto 
Me." 



"Bear ye one another's burdens." — Gal. ri. 2. 

ET us not say an unkind word to-day 
^-* And weep for it to-morrow ; 
Let us not sow such seed around our way 
As soon would yield us sorrow. 

But, as we pass with busy haste along, 

Let us a moment tarry ; 
There must be someone in the restless throng 

Whose burden we might carry. 



80 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

There must be some tired life in touch with ours — 
Some pathway veiled by sadness — 

Some hand that gathers thorns instead of 
flowers ; — 
Let us then share our gladness. 

And let the world rejoice because we live — 

Because our hearts are willing 
From their own fulness unto all to give — 

The law of Christ fulfilling. 



MY MISSION. 

SINCE I may write a message to His world 
Straight from the lips of God, henceforth 
my heart 
Shall seek no higher service — shall not strive 
To find a nobler task — a better part. 

For God has other hands and other lips 
More fitly formed and tuned than mine, I know, 
For wider fields of labour ; there are paths 
Of service where He would not have me go — 

Lest I should miss the word He can but speak 
When quietly I wait beside His feet, 
To catch His faintest whisper — when His soul 
Would breathe through mine some thought sur- 
passing sweet 



ON SERVICE 81 

For those who far off in the conflict serve, 

Or hearts that mourn their dead or feel His hand 

In discipline laid on them, or the sick, 

Or those who still outside His kingdom stand. 

So let me wait before Him — seeking not 
To toil when He hath bidden me be still, 
But learning daily in His secret place 
How to interpret faithfully His will. 



REMINISCENCES. 

T THINK, if you and I could see to-day 

-"■ The flowers we might have gathered on 

life's way — 
The joy we missed — the love we might have 

won — 
The deeds of kindness which we might have 

done — 

If we could know, how hearts that touched our 

own 
Bore oftentimes a secret pain alone — 
If we could see, as God sees — in the light, 
Lives that we might have led toward the right — 

If we could read the story of the years — 
It would be often with regretful tears 
For countless duties which we failed to see — 
For all that we forgot to do and be ! 
6 



82 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

If — but there is no time for vain regret ; — 
Life may hold bright to-morrows even yet ;— 
To-day is always ours, and, if we will, 
With tasks of love the Present we may fill. 

Let us forget our failures then, unless 
The memory of wasted hours may bless, 
And lessons gathered from the Past be found 
As calls to service in this daily round ; 

For even at our side the broad fields lie, 
" White unto harvest " still, and you and I 
May yet find work amidst the toilers there-— 
May yet the gladness of the reapers share. 



ON SUFFERING 



85 



TRUE HEROISM. 

O E brave ! Be patient ! Let the world for- 

get 
That thou hast suffered — save that it may gain 
Some blessing through thy secret pain, 
And rise to some new hope through thy regret. 
He is a hero who has learnt to live 
Above his own concerns, and bear his part 
In all the burdens of the world's great heart, 
And to his fellow-men himself to give. 



THE MINISTRY OF PAIN. 

A/TY prayer is hushed. Ah ! Dearest, say, is 

1V1 thine 

The hardest part to suffer, or is mine ? 

I stand and watch beside thee, and thy pain 

Thrills through me also — burns within my brain, 

Until I know that if my wish might be 

Fulfilled — if I might bear this cross for thee, 

Mine would be lighter far : I love thee so 

And feel so deeply with thee ; yet I know 

85 



86 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I dare not pray for this, because God's hand 
Guides surely, though we cannot understand 
The way by which He leads us to His rest ; 
And I might seek to keep from thee His best- 
To take some cup of blessing from thee : Nay- 
Let Him do all His will. I see to-day 
That they most truly like their Master grow 
Who follow Him by suffering below. 



SURRENDERED. 

\7DUR life is spent in service : day by day 
A You scatter precious seed along life's way ; 
You lift the fallen and uphold the weak, 
And words of hope and consolation speak 
To hearts that mourn, and bravely help to bear 
The burden of your brothers' pain and care. 

Soon, when the King shall gather in His own, 
You will lay golden sheaves before His throne ; 
And, where the sower and the reaper share 
The joy of harvest-home, your brow will wear 
The crown of victory which God will give 
To all who only for His glory live. 

I may not stand beside you in the strife, 
Though joyfully I would : my part in life 
Is — learning how to bear my Father's will — 
My hardest task — to suffer and be still. 



ON SUFFERING 87 

I know not why ; I cannot understand ; 
Yet in the dark I trust His guiding hand. 

Will my soul waken in the morning light 
To find that this is service in His sight ? — 
That they who patiently life's lessons take 
From His dear hand, and learn them for His sake, 
Shall be received as those whose toil has won 
A smile of welcome and the King's "Well 
done"? 



"The fellowship of His sufferings. " — Phil. iii. 10. 

T KNOW, O Jesus, in the bitter hour 

■*• Of human pain, that Thou hast felt the 

power 
Of deeper anguish, and my lips are still 
Because in silence Thou hast borne God's will. 

I know that not a sorrow comes to me 

Which has not spent its strength, O Christ, on 

Thee — 
That not a cloud lies on my path to-day 
Which has not fallen first across Thy way. 

I know that, as I lift my heart to Thine, 
Thou art still touched by every care of mine ; 
I know that not a prayer unheard can rise — 
That not a thought is hidden from Thine eyes. 



88 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I know, whatever comes, that Thou hast 

planned 
My life for me, and Thy unerring hand 
Through calm and storm my soul shall safely 

guide 
To God and Home, and I am satisfied. 



THE MINISTRY OF SUFFERING. 

T S this the answer ? — In the dawn I prayed 
That this — the holy Sabbath — might be 
made 
A day of strength to me — that I might grow 
Nearer to God — more like Him, and might 

know 
More of His will and His name glorify : 
Now, in a darkened room, alone I lie, 
Conscious of only weariness and pain, 
And this strange questioning in heart and brain. 

Is this the answer ? — Yes : I could not be 
Nearer on earth than here ; I seem to see 
A Form beside me, and a tender hand 
Is laid upon me, and I understand ; 
Ah ! I am nearer now with none between 
Than in my chosen way I could have been. 

I prayed that I might know the will divine — 
That His life might be glorified in mine ; 



ON SUFFERING 89 

What higher lesson could my Father teach 
Than this, that they who would such honour 

reach, 
First at His feet must learn that to obey 
Is better far than sacrifice ; to-day 
I chose to serve ; He bade me suffer ; so 
Yielding my will to take His own, I know 
That by obedience, not by works, I bring 
The truest praise and glory to my King. 



ON COMPENSATION 



COMPENSATION. 

HpHERE is sunlight for to-morrow, 
A Though to-day is veiled in gloom ; 
Joy is woven with our sorrow ; 
Life lies just beyond the tomb. 



From the midst of pain and sighing 
Sweetest music sometimes wakes ; 

Often hope is almost dying 

Just before the morning breaks. 



Weary heads find softest pillows ; 

Rest is where the shadows lie ; 
Faith looks out across life's billows 

For a golden by and by. 



God His noblest lessons teaches 
Through the discipline of pain, 

And the darkest valley reaches 
Out to our eternal gain. 

93 



94 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



LIFE'S LIGHTS AND SHADES. 

TI7E have to take the rough things with the 
* \ smooth — 

The dark days with the bright — 
To look beyond the shadows of to-day, 

And find to-morrow's light — 

To hush our hopeless craving for the Past, 

And gather every flower 
That breathes its fragrance on our pathway now : 

This is the golden hour ! 

And if our lives have lost their fairest charm, 

We must not pine and fret, 
Nor hush the music of the olden song ; — 

There may be bright days yet. 

So let us take the rough things with the 
smooth — 

The dark days with the bright — 
And know that, though we cannot understand, 

God's will is always right. 



THE BRIGHT TO-MORROW. 

T KNOW the skies are dark to-night, 
* And life is sad and full of pain — 
But then, to-morrow may be bright, 
And life may soon be glad again. 



ON COMPENSATION 95 

And, as I stand beside the tomb 
Where all my treasure seems to be, 
I know that, even through its gloom, 
Sometime new hope may come to me. 



SUNLIGHT AND SHADOW. 

' I VHERE must be thorns amid life's flowers, 

A you know, 
And you and I, wherever we may go, 
Can find no joy that is not mixed with pain — 
No path without a cloud : It would be vain 
For me to wish that not a single tear 
Might dim your gladness in the coming year ; 
I am not wise enough to understand 
All that is best for you ; — the Master-hand 
Must sometimes touch life's saddest chords, to 

reach 
Its sweetest music : God, perchance, would 

teach 
The way to joy through sorrow ; yet the night 
Will be forgotten in the morning light. 

And all He sends to us of good or ill 
May bring us only blessing, if we will ; 
Our loss is truest gain if, day by day, 
He fills the place of all He takes away. 



ON PRAYER 



"Seek, and ye shall find."— Matt. vii. 7. 

f~\ CHILD of God, thy Father knows 

How thy tired heart — athirst for Him- 
G ropes blindly through the shadows dim, 
And seeks, yet cannot find, repose. 

No heart can crave for Him in vain. 
Pray on ! He hath not ceased to care ; 
He cannot fail to heed thy prayer ; — 
Unchanged His promises remain. 

Soon He shall lift the clouds that hide 
The shining of His face from thee, 
And in His light thine eyes shall see 
That He is near — close at thy side ! 



"Out of the depths."— Ps. cxxx. 1. 

JVlY Lord— my Lord- 
Why dost Thou keep me waiting at Thy feet 
So long unanswered, when Thou knowest well 
The anguish of the soul that lifts to Thee, 
From lowest depths of need, its pleading prayer ? 

99 

LOFC* 



ioo A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Thine is the power, and not a hand save Thine 
Can lift the burden ; and Thou knowest, Lord, 
That if Thy voice should bid me pass to-night 
Beyond the things of earth to Thine abode, 
I dare not think of heaven without the gift 
For which I pray on earth ; it seems to me 
I could not bear the glory and the light 
While these, whose lives are woven so with 

mine 
That each of each seems part, were in the dark. 

Lord — my Lord — 

Speak through the awful hush which lies 

between 
Thy soul and mine, and say that these shall live. 
Thy hand is strong ; Thy heart is kind and 

good ; 
Why dost Thou tarry — Thou who lovest me ? 

1 know — I know — 

Have I not prayed, " Lord, teach me how to 

pray"? 
This is Thine answer ; Thou art teaching me : 
Those are not prayers — those empty forms of 

words 
Which day by day we lift to Thee, when all 
In life seems fair, and we have never walked 
A path of sorrow — never learnt to love, 
And afterwards, to lose, nor followed where 
Dear wandering feet the downward pathway 

trod, 
Nor felt the agony of soul that comes 
With partings harder far to bear than death. 



ON PRAYER ioi 

But these are prayers — these cries that rise to 

Thee 
From hearts that well-nigh break beneath their 

load, 
That none can lift nor lighten save Thyself. 
These, these are prayers ; these wild impassioned 

words 
Must reach Thy heart ; and even so, O Lord, 
Since Thou art faithful, be it soon or late, 
Thou canst not fail to give our heart's desire. 



"The Spirit . , maketh intercession." — Rom. 
viii. 26. 

CANNOT reach Thee through the mists 
which lie 

About my path to-night ; 
Yet in the darkness Faith uplifts her eye 

Towards the changeless light ; 
Thou knowest — hearest my unspoken prayer : 

Doth not the Spirit read 
This heart of mine and tell Thee all my care, 
My longing and my need ? 



" In the land of the shadow of death." — Isa. ix. 2. 

O GOD, be pitiful ! 
Hear Thou my cry ; 
Behold these helpless souls, that lie 
Near — yet so far away — 



102 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Blind even while the light of day 
Is shining, and Thy face 
Is turned toward them, and the day of grace 
Is not yet past : 

Ah ! hear me as I plead. 
How can these pray who do not know their 

need ? — 
I pray for them : 

O Lord, stretch forth Thine hand 
And touch and heal : 

They do not understand ; 
They lie in calm, untroubled sleep, 
And know not that I wake and weep 
Because the Day — the awful Day — 
Draws nearer as I pray ! 
Be near me in this hour — 
Nay, more, within me ; let the power 
Of Thine own Spirit all my soul inspire 
With holy, living fire ; 

So let me be 
A messenger from Thee. 
My Lord — my Lord — 
How can I reach them ? These weak hands of 
mine 

Would link their lives with Thine ; 
My feet would follow where they stray 

Along the downward way ; 
My voice would call them to Thy side — 
Would bid them look upon the Crucified — 
And looking, live ; yet if alone I stand, 
My words and work are vain. 



ON PRAYER 103 

Speak through me ; let Thy hand 
Work by me, since no soul can pass from death 
To life — save by the new-creating breath 
Of Thine own Spirit ; and no word of mine, 
Except Thou follow it with power divine, 
Can waken them : Thou bidd'st me cast on 

Thee 
My care : I lift these ! 

Lord, as Thou hast looked on me 
In love and pity, look on them, I pray, 
And take their sin away. 



" Praying always." — Eph. vi. 18. 

"DRAY on — pray on — meanwhile this soul of 

* mine 

(Awake to consciousness of its own need 

Of more abundant life, and such a power 

As has not yet been mine, and deeper love 

To Him and, for His sake, to all His world, 

For such an ear as shall not fail to catch 

His faintest whisper, and a voice so trained 

That I may speak His message faithfully) 

Yields itself unto Him that He may work 

His perfect will in me : Pray on — pray on ; 

Low at His feet I lie, my waiting soul 

Expectant for the answer, unafraid, 

Though He may choose to perfect me, I know 

In such fierce fires of sorrow or of pain 



104 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

As mortal flesh must shrink from, or the loss 
Of all that I hold dearest, or the call 
To tread an unknown path alone with Him. 
I am not strong ; the strength shall come to me 
With every need — the grace to follow Him 
With every call. This only I desire — 
To be an emptiness for Him to fill — 
Nought of myself, but by His mighty power 
A minister to all, that so my King 
May see His own desire fulfilled in me. 



THE REJECTION. 

A NSWER me — answer me, Father — tell me 
that these, some day — 
These who are far from the kingdom — these 

who have missed the way — 
Yet shall be gathered in mercy — yet shall be 

called Thine own ; — 
Tell me that Thou wilt forgive them ; bend to 

me from Thy throne ; — 
Say that Thy heart is not hardened, though 

they have sinned so long. 
Only be pitiful, Father ; pardon their years of 

wrong. 

Is it Thy voice, O my Father ?— " Child, I 

have answered thee ; 
Why in such blindness and error comest thou 

unto Me, 



ON PRAYER 105 

Praying for pity and mercy?' Late is thy 

prayer, My child ; 
Long ago My wrath was lifted ; — My heart was 

reconciled. 
Hast thou not known My compassion ? Hast 

thou not heard My call 
Unto the uttermost reaching — offering life to 
all?" 

Yea, it is true, O my Father — true for Thy 

world to-day ; 
Not by Thy will should men perish ; Thou 

hast prepared a way 
Into the kingdom of heaven — open for all 

mankind — 
Willing that all should be pardoned — all should 

an entrance find ; — 
By their own will they reject Thee ; by their 

own choice they die — 
See the great Sacrifice offered — see Him, and 

yet pass by. 

These who have sought their own ruin — choos- 
ing the downward way — 

Consciously, wilfully turning rather to night 
than day — 

These who are quenching the Spirit — these who 
refuse His call, 

May not charge Him with injustice — God who 
is good to all. 



io6 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

His heart is open toward us ; His arm is strong 

to save ; 
God has not willed man's destruction — willed 

him a hopeless grave. 



" Neither pray I for these alone, but for all them 
also which shall believe on Me through their word." — 
John xvii. 20. 



1V/TY prayer is finished, yet I linger still 
*~ Before the throne ; I am so tired to- 

night ; 
I only feel the greatness of my need, 
But cannot speak, it — even to my Lord : 
I know not why, but there are mists between, 
And all the words I uttered seem to fall 
Back, answerless, into my heart again : 
Say — shall I miss my Father's blessing so ? 

Nay — through the mists a glad thought comes 

to me; 
Are there not other heads bowed low to-night, 
And hearts uplifted to the throne for me, 
In prayer that God, the Giver of all good, 
May send a full supply for all my need ? 
My faith grows strong again : O friends of mine, 
Who always in His presence speak my name, 
I count myself far richer by your prayers 
Than if earth's treasures at my feet you laid ! 
And I remember how through all the years 



ON PRAYER 107 

One prayer has blest me — ay, and blesses still — 
The prayer which from the lips of Jesus rose 
Before Gethsemane and Calvary, 
When, looking on through ages yet to be, 
And burning with intense desire for those 
Who should not see and know Him in His flesh, 
Yet should believe on Him and by Him live, 
He talked with God concerning them — and I, 
Though least and lowest of the mighty throng, 
Yet day by day have found the answer mine. 

It is enough ! God's gifts to me to-night 
Are measured not by this faint prayer of mine ; 
The Church — the Body and her living Head 
Plead for me in His presence : For the sake 
Of Him whose prayer God cannot turn away, 
And these — for His sake heard — He blesses me. 



ON THE HEREAFTER 



109 



THE HOMELAND. 

" Eye hath not seen, 
Ear hath not heard, 

Neither have entered into the hearts of men 
The things which God hath for His own prepared." 

V/NLY afar we stand, 

And in some strange, glad moments here and there, 

Amidst the discord of our lives, we seem 

To hear the music from beyond the gates : 

I wonder dimly when I feel my soul 

Stirred even to its inmost depths to-day 

By sweet earth-music, and I seem to rise 

Into a higher, purer life than ours, 

And nearer to the perfect life of God — 

As in each flower about my path I see 

The bright expression of some thought of His, 

And marvel at the beauty of the thought 

Which finds fulfilment in so fair a thing — 

I wonder, what is the reality ? 

And how shall we, whose hearts are thrilled 

to-day 

By these faint echoes from the far-off land, 

Which float across our dreams, and by the songs 

Of earth which seem to speak to us of Heaven, 

Bear all the rapture of the music there ? 
111 



ii2 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

My soul goes trembling forth to meet it now — 
Listening with glad expectancy and hope 
For all the fulness of the angels' song, 
Of which we catch but broken fragments here. 

Our life-path always lies amidst the graves 
Wherein are laid the fairest hopes and dreams 
Of bygone days, and, dearer still to us, 
The silent forms of those who sometime trod 
The way of life with us, and scarce a flower 
Uplifts its face — or ray of summer light 
About us falls — or beauty meets our eyes 
In wood, or vale, or hill — or any joy 
Comes to us now, or bonds of love are wound 
Around our hearts, or tender sympathy 
Of new friends touches us, but, as we feel 
Each thrill of fresh delight, a shadow falls 
About it, and we pause and seem to lose 
The gladness of the Present, since we see 
In all things sad memorials of the Past : 
I mean that, though to-day may seem as fair 
As yesterday — because some face and form 
And voice are lost to us — because we miss 
Some love, some hope, some joy — we seem to 

stand 
Amidst the sunshine, yet beside a tomb. 

So all our way is strewn with memories 
Which take a larger part in life to-day 
Than all the things we hold ; a strange, sad 
sense 



ON THE HEREAFTER 113 

Of something wanting, something loved and lost, 

Is ever with us as the days go by — 

And yet it is not altogether sad ; 

It seems to us we would not, if we might, 

Forget the days and dreams which are no more, 

But rather let remembrance lead us on 

To find them all in resurrection life — 

Since we have learnt that all the pure and true 

Shall pass through death to life, and so again 

Be ours when sorrow shall have passed away. 

I know the Homeland will be bright for me, 
Because of dear ones who will meet me there, 
For there are many who have touched my life, 
And left me bound to them by such strong ties 
As shall not yield, though death must pass 

between, 
And in the morning on the other shore, 
The friendship and communion, tasted here 
And broken, shall be mine for evermore. 

It helps me sometimes, when my dear ones pass 

Out of my life and I go on alone, 

Along the path where still I seem to hear 

The echo of their voices everywhere, 

To know that some day God will surely lift 

The mists which lie between our lives to-day. 

I know that there are friends who still remain, 
Not less beloved than those of olden time ; 
And I am not forgetful of earth's joys — 
8 



n 4 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

The summer days — the beauty all around — 
But it is more, I know, through loss than gain, 
And more through pain and sorrow, than the 

hours 
Of cloudless sunshine — that He teaches us, 
Untwines our clinging hands from things whereon 
Sometime decay must breathe, and bids us look 
Toward the things eternal in the skies. 

We are so blind that when God bids us live 
In gardens where the flowers are fresh and 

bright, 
We spend our time in building walls around, 
So high that we can never reach to see 
The fairer garden on the other side : 
And He puts forth His hand and lays them low, 
Not harshly, but with that great love of His, 
Which could not see His children bound to 

earth 
(Though earth be fair) with Heaven itself so 

near ; 
And who would count the cost of any loss 
Which leads to such an everlasting gain ? 

Nay, rather let us trample on the dust 

Of broken idols, and, with hands outstretched 

And eyes uplifted to the hills of God, 

Without a passing shadow of regret, 

Though all be yielded for the kingdom's sake, 

Press always on toward the open Gate : 

For only Heaven can satisfy the soul, 



ON THE HEREAFTER 115 

Since only Heaven is free from change and death, 

And only Heaven shall give to us the key 

Of earth's strange mysteries ; our hearts grown 

tired 
Of building hopes which must be overthrown, 
See, through the waiting -time which lies 

between, 
The grand fulfilment of all pure desire, 
And no more incompleteness — no more pain 
Of parting — no more weariness nor care : 
There shall be perfect rest and perfect love, 
Unclouded friendships and unfading flowers — 
The fulness of the joys which here in part 
Are ours — the resurrection-life of God. 

These are but fragments of a mighty Whole 
Which is Himself; these are the things of 

God— 
The things which dimly now we understand 
Because we see the shadow of the Real — 
The things by which He leads us to Himself: 
We could not reach the heights and depths of 

God, 
With human hands and human hearts and brains, 
With such a veil as now is drawn between, 
And such a limit set about our powers ; 
Therefore He leads us slowly, step by step, 
And shows us as our eyes can bear the sight 
Rays of His glory ; some day we shall wake, 
Grown strong to see Him even as He is, 
To learn that God is Heaven and Heaven is God. 



n6 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



AT BREAK OF DAY. 

SHALL see you again, and the gloom of 
A the night 

For ever shall vanish away ; 
I shall stand at your side in the glory and light 

Of beautiful, shadowless day. 

I shall hear in the songs of rejoicing and praise 
The sound of your voice once again, 

Far away from the toil of these wearisome days — 
Away from earth's sorrow and pain — 

Where our spirits at last from their bondage set 
free, 
No longer in exile to roam, 
Face to face with the King in His beauty shall 
be— 
At rest in His presence — at home. 



THE SEPARATION. 

" Then shall He say also unto them on His left 
hand, Depart from Me." — Matt. xxv. 41. 

1 N dreams it comes to me ! 
With sad, reluctant eyes I seem to see 
The great white Throne — the God of justice 

there — 
Not with His hands outstretched in pity now — 



ON THE HEREAFTER 117 

Not with compassion written on His brow — 
But changed, as One who can no longer spare, 

Who turns to judge at last, 
Those who have mocked His mercy in the 
Past. 

They pass before the throne, and on each 

face 
The awful fear of conscious guilt I trace ; 
And if on earth our lives have never met, 
Nor learnt to share a human sorrow, yet 
My heart can feel the torture of their grief, 
Yet finds no way to offer them relief. 

Ah ! what is this ? What must I see and know 
To fill my soul with deeper woe ? 
Say, who are these before the throne ? — 
Lives that on earth were woven with my own ! — 
Hearts that were linked with mine by sacred 

ties — 
Hands I have clasped, and dear familiar eyes, 
So truly mine, that now, as in the Past, 
It seems to me, my love would hold them fast, 
And would not let them go ; 

Yet in this hour 
They stand alone, and love has lost its power. 

I hear the judge pronounce the righteous doom ; 
I see them pass into the silent gloom, 
Away, beyond my reach — beyond my sight — 
Into the hopeless, everlasting night, 



n8 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Through which no ray of light can ever shine 
To lead them back to God : 

No prayer of mine 
Has power to help them on that distant shore — 
Lost — lost for evermore ! 



PARTED. 

/~\ TELL me — tell me — on the other shore, 
^^ When all life's shadows shall have passed 

away, 
Shall I stand side by side with you once more ? — 
Shall I behold the face I miss to-day ? 

If I could look across the years which lie 
Beneath this cloud — between the Here and There, 
And see that in the dawnlight By and By 
Our hearts once more the self-same joys should 
share — 

If I might see that through this lonely way, 
In God's Hereafter there should come to me 
The gladness which I know in part to-day, 
In full completeness, always mine to be — 

If I might know that in the Better Land 
Your hands should clasp my own — your sunny 

smile 
Should welcome me — I would not fear to stand 
Alone, in silence, for a little while. 



ON THE HEREAFTER 119 



A CHRISTMAS THOUGHT. 

THERE is always a thought which underlies 
the greeting of Christmastide, 
And a hope which breathes through the 

messages which we scatter far and wide, 
That our dearest and best, as years pass by, 

may nearer and nearer grow 
To the home where our lives, though parted 

here though shadowed sometimes below, 

May dwell in the life of God— the light which 

never a cloud can dim, 
And for ever be linked by deathless bonds to 

those who are one in Him. 



AFTERWARDS. 

NOW the mists of pain and sorrow 
Come to cloud our fairest way ; 
And the shadow of to-morrow 
Steals the brightness from to-day. 

Now an undertone of sadness 

Echoes through our sweetest song ; 

And we lose the morning gladness 
In the twilight cold and long. 



120 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Now death takes the flowers we cherish ; 

Hope seems only born to die ; 
All our earthly treasures perish 

As the changeful days go by. 

Afterwards — our souls awaking, 
Out beyond the shadows grey, 

Shall behold the cloudless breaking 
Of the everlasting day. 

Afterwards — no sound of weeping 
Shall disturb the tranquil air ; 

Afterwards — in God's safe keeping, 
We shall find our loved ones there. 

Where cold death shall reach us never — 
Where no lonely exiles roam — 

Where life's storms are hushed for ever 
And the pilgrims rest at home. 



" For where your treasure is, there will your heart 
be also." — Matt. vi. 21. 

CINCE still there burns within my heart, 

^ uncrushed, 

The passionate desire for something gone, 

Or someone lost to me — some dear voice hushed, 

Yet ever listened for as years go on — 



ON THE HEREAFTER 121 

Count it no wonder that I turn away, 

And find no charm in what the world holds 

dear, 
No perfect compensation in to-day, 
No path whereon my steps can linger here — 

Because hope is not dead ; — I know — I know — 
It waits fulfilment on another shore ; — 
All that my heart has loved and lost below — 
Or seemed to lose — shall come to me once 
more — 

But robbed of all that made it sin on earth, 
And sacred, since it bore the altar-fire, 
And pure, because refined as gold, and worth 
The waiting-time between — the strong desire. 

I hold no loss as such ; that must be gain 
By which toward the heights of God we rise ; 
I count no treasure buried here in vain 
Which seeks a fuller life beyond the skies. 



WITH THEE, WHERE THOU ART. 

I DO not know what lies in store for me 

In yonder sinless land ; 
It is too dim and far for me to understand ; — 
I only know, Lord, that I go to Thee. 



122 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

How can I reach with human hands and heart, 

Through mortal mists of gloom, 
The spirit world where I shall live beyond the 
tomb ? 

Yet I can reach Thee, Jesus, where Thou art. 

I will not dream of heaven, since at the best 

My dreams are vain, I know ; 
I cannot paint the glory, standing here below : 

I think of Thee, and in my Thought I rest. 

My Lord — my Lord — it is enough to-day, 

While in glad hope I wait, 
To know that Thou wilt meet me at the open 
Gate 
And Thy dear love shall be my heaven 
alway. 



"The fashion of this world passeth away." — 
I Cor. vii. 31. 

COON it will all be forgotten; soon, as a 

^ dream of the night — 

Losing its power in the morning, passes away 

from our sight, 
So shall this dream of the earth-life — so shall 

this pleasure and pain, 
Dost in the glory of heaven, never disturb us 

again. 



ON THE HEREAFTER 123 

Only to-day, as the sorrow seems to be real in 
our sleep — 

Ay, and the joy that we dream of, so for a 
time as we weep 

Over a cloud on our pathway — so, as in sun- 
shine we smile, 

Life, with its light and its darkness, seems to be 
all for awhile. 



Sometime I think we shall wonder how in such 

trifles as these, 
Blossoms that fade as we touch them, there was 

sufficient to please ; 
Sometime I think we shall wonder, there in the 

shadowless day, 
Why we were saddened so often — why we grew 

tired of the way. 



Soon it will all be forgotten ; — soon, in the light 

of the throne, 
Never again to be weary — never to wander 

alone — 
Never to shrink from temptation — never to fall 

in the fight — 
One in our glorious Leader, we shall walk with 

Him in white. 



124 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



AFTER THE DAWN. 

DALE grows the light that shone at dawn of 

day, 
When rose the sun in yonder eastern skies ; 
The golden flush of morning fades away ; 
The first pure radiance of the daylight dies. 

Pass on, fair morn ! Shall there not come 

to me 
Another dawn — a Dayspring brighter far, 
When through the mists my waiting eyes shall 

see 
The rising glory of the Morning Star ? 

Pass on, fair morn ! I would not stay thy 

flight, 
Though night must cast its shade across my way 
Ere I shall stand where dwells the changeless 

Where night is lost in everlasting day. 



HERE AND THERE. 

"LI ERE on the light of meeting, dark 
"*• ■* The cloud of parting lies ! 
We scarce have clasped each other's hands 
And met each other's eyes — 



ON THE HEREAFTER 12. 

And felt within our hearts the joy 

Of standing once again 
With those we loved in olden time, 

Before we feel the pain 

Of empty hands and tear-dimmed eyes, 

And voices silent grown — 
The sad to-morrow, and the path 

That each must tread alone. 
• • . . . 

There, there for ever — evermore, 

Beneath a fairer sky, 
The lives so strangely linked with ours — 

In some sweet By and By — 

Beyond the veil which lies between, 
Shall touch our own at last — 

Shall taste with us a fuller joy 
Than ever in the Past — 

Since nevermore through all the years 

Shall Love her dearest miss ; 
And never cloud of parting falls 

On heaven's perfect bliss. 



"Thou shalt know hereafter." — John xiii. 7 

'"TPHE end is not with thee, 

But in our Father's hand : 
Rest in His love, and know that He 
Hath all things wisely planned. 



126 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Thou canst not read to-day 
The story of the years, 
Nor canst thou see on this dark way 
The meaning of thy tears. 

Wait until dawn shall break, 
Where now the shadows fall ; 
Then shall thy deathless soul awake 
To understand it all. 



AT THE PARTING OF THE 
WAYS. 

TF we were standing — you and I — to-night, 

On that strange, distant shore, 
Somewhere between the darkness and the light, 

And might return no more, — 
If, looking backward, down the restless stream 

Which we call life, from there, 
We saw it as it is — a troubled dream 

Of happiness and care, 
Our hearts would wonder that they held so dear 

Things of such little cost — 
Would wonder that they wept so often here 

For earthly treasures lost. 

Say — in the silence of the Borderland, 

Between the Here and There, 
With no more tasks for weary heart and hand — 

No more to do or bear — 



ON THE HEREAFTER 127 

Set free from lifelong bondage to the claim 

Of fancied duty, or 
The wild, vain search for honour, wealth, or 
fame, 

Which charmed our hearts before — 
And face to face with all the great Unknown, 

Grown near and real at last, — 
Will you and I be satisfied to own 

The record of our Past ? 



"WHEN THE MISTS HAVE 
ROLLED AWAY." 

" "\ X 7"E shall know each other better when 

* * * the mists have rolled away ! " 

Never shall there fall a shadow on the light of 

perfect day ; 
Never shall our dearest doubt us ; never shall 

we lose their love ; 
Not a cloud shall come between us, in the 

promised land above. 

Ah ! to-day there must be shadows — must be 

mists of bitter pain ; 
We may give our choicest treasures — yield our 

fairest gems in vain ; 
We may fail to win affection — miss the sweetest 

flowers that bloom, 
And we may, with hearts unconscious, cast on 

other spirits gloom. 



128 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

There are strange, uncertain pathways, winding 

through the shades of night, 
But we know that in the morning there shall be 

unclouded light. 
There is sunshine in the homeland, though the 

clouds about us cling ; 
There is perfect compensation in the presence 

of the King. 

Face to face with Him for ever — meeting there 

before His throne 
Once again our best and dearest, we shall know 

as we are known : 
We shall see mistakes and errors in a clearer, 

purer light — 
Reading as our Father reads us — seeing with 

His holy sight. 



WHITHER ? 

T^OR ever and for ever — can it be — 

Dear feet are slipping from the sands of 
time, 

Are passing far away from you and me, 
To some strange distant clime ? 

And hands that tenderly about us cling, 
And eyes that make such sunshine on our way, 
And hearts that touch these hearts of yours and 
mine, 
Are only ours to-day. 



ON THE HEREAFTER 129 

To-morrow — ah ! we shrink in awful dread 

From all the mystery and doubt and gloom 

To-morrow they may lie among the dead, 
Beneath the silent tomb. 

What then? shall love no more be satisfied, 
And lives that seemed so strangely linked before 
Be parted by a dark and shoreless tide 
For ever — evermore ? 



SHADOW AND SUBSTANCE. 

A RE we not vainly seeking, day by day, 
For that which only seems to be ? 
The Real lies close beside us on life's way ; — 

We pass it by, and fail to see, 
Blind as we are, how that which now we hold 

Within our careless hands — that seem 
Unconscious of its worth — is purest gold, 
And all the rest a passing dream ! 



IN THE MORNING. 

TN the morning — in the calm, still morning — ■ 

With our troubled dreams for ever past, 
With the tumult and the strife forgotten — 
We shall fully understand at last 

9 



130 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

All the mystic windings of our pathway, 
All the weary discipline of pain — 

How the " little while " of loss is leading 
Onward to our everlasting gain. 

Only while we walk amid the shadows — 
Pilgrims in a dreary, unknown land — 

Let us wait with patience God's unfolding ; 
Let us trust the guiding of His hand. 



HEREAFTER. 

"P\ REAMS that have missed fulfilment — 
^^ thoughts that were never known — 

Words that were never spoken, save in the 

heart alone — 
Shall they be lost for ever ? Nay ! for I know 

somewhere 
Hearts that on earth have buried all that was 

bright and fair, 
Find the response they lived for all through the 

clouded Past — 
Meet once again their dearest, know and are 

known at last. 



ON CHRIST 



1SI 



THE STORY OF THE CROSS. 

"DEHOLD a cross! — and on the cross a 

*-* Form — 

A patient head which bows beneath the storm 

Of His own Father's wrath, and foot and hand 

Are pierced by cruel nails. Around Him stand 

His murderers — not even satisfied 

With such a death : they mock Him and 

deride — 
"Is He the Son of God? Let Him come 

down." 
He need not bleed beneath the thorny crown 
Their hands have placed upon Him — need not 

bear 
Their cruel taunts ; let Him but breathe a 

prayer, 
And God Himself and all the hosts on high 
Would hasten to His side : why will He die ? 

He speaks ! Is it for vengeance that He 



cries 



Hush ! is His curse upon them ere He dies ? 
Nay — as in life He taught them, so in death 
He seals His doctrine with His latest breath ; — 

133 



i 3 4 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

" Forgive them, for they know not what they 

do." 
He taught — " As ye would men should do to 

you 
Do even so to them," and — harder still — 
Said, "Love your enemies ; — give good for ill " ; 
Then, dying, meets the sternest test at last, 
And conquers still — forgiving all the Past. 

I write no story of His agony — 
The awful shadow of Gethsemane — 
Hours when the curse of all the human race 
Fell on His head, and when His Father's face 
Was turned in justice from His Son — His own 
Before His shrinking soul went forth alone — 
Passed through the night of mystery and 

gloom — 
In mortal weakness — to the sinner's doom : 
There is no record, since no human hand 
Could tell the story none could understand. 

I seem to stand before the great white throne 
Of judgment — face to face with God — alone. 
And all the Past sweeps over heart and brain ; — 
My sin-stained life comes back to me again, 
And in the light of God before me lies. 
How can I meet the gaze of His pure eyes ? — 
I, who have long since forfeited my right 
To an inheritance beyond the night — 
I, who have trampled on the laws divine, 
And erred in almost every thought of mine. 



ON CHRIST 135 

I lift my eyes ; a Man with outstretched hands 
And pleading voice before the Father stands : 
What strange, new hope is this ? I see — I see ; 
The Christ has borne my guilt, and I am free ! 
For me the storm broke on His sinless head ; 
For me, on Calvary, His blood was shed. 
I fear no more the anger of my God ; — 
He stood between, and let the lifted rod 
Fall on Himself: I wandered far astray 
From God and home, and could not find my 

way 
Across the gulf which my own sin had made, 
Back to my rest ; He bridged the gulf, and bade 
His blind child, groping in the shadows dim, 
Cross over by a single step to Him. 

Light for my darkness — hope for my despair, 
And healing for the pain I could not bear, 
And smiles of joy for all the night of tears, 
And freedom from the burden of the years, 
And everlasting gain for all my loss, 
Come to me in the Glory of the cross ! 
I stand beneath His shadow, unafraid ; 
God counts me free ; my ransom price is paid. 
All — all is mine : no questioning — no doubt 
Can reach me here ; — He will not cast me out. 

O soul, oppressed by sin, look up and see ; — 
There is no anger in His face for thee. 
Cast all thy burden on the heart divine. 
For whose sin was He slain, if not for thine ? 



136 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

"Come — whosoever will," the Spirit calls; — 
"Come unto Me," and still the blessing 

falls 
On him who dares to lift his hand and take 
The gift his Father offers for the sake 
Of One who pleads His death before the 

throne — 
Who made our condemnation as His own. 

I know not all thy story, yet I know, 
However thou hast wandered, even though 
The record of a sin-stained life may seem 
To hang about thee like an evil dream — 
Though men withhold forgiveness, link thy 

name 
With outcasts, only speak of thee, to blame — 
The heart of God is kinder far than theirs, 
He turns toward thee, and in pity spares. 
I say that, when thy faintest prayer ascends 
Through Christ to yonder throne, the Father 

bends 
To seal His promise— even to forgive, 
And bids thee, for the sake of Jesus, live. 



"This same Jesus." — Acts i. n. 

I_J E has not changed through all the years ; — 

we know 
That He remembers still the weight of woe 



ON CHRIST 137 

Which once oppressed Him, and the lonely 

way 
Through which His tired feet journeyed day by 

day — 
The pain He bore — the weariness and strife — 
The toil and care of His own human life. 



He has not passed into the glory-land 
Forgetful of our lives ; His gentle hand 
Is still outstretched to reach our need, as when 
On earth He cared for all the cares of men, 
And in His heart of sympathy and grace, 
For all the " heavy-laden " found a place. 



He is as near to human hearts to-day 
As when He journeyed on the earthly way — 
So near that all our wants are known to Him — ■ 
So near that, though our faith, grown cold and 

dim, 
Fails oftentimes to grasp the truth — He knows 
The secret story of our hidden woes. 



And, through His manhood, understanding all 
The power of our temptation, as we call 
Out of the depths of weakness, on His name — 
Not as a far-off God, but still the same — 
Kind, pitiful, He bends to help and bless, 
And hides our failures by His righteousness. 



138 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



" Seek ye first the kingdom of God." — Matt. vi. 33. 

TS there no room for Jesus — 

Not a place in your heart for Him ? 
Are the earth-lights so dazzling 
That the light of His face seems dim ? 

Are the earth-songs so joyous 
That you hear not the Saviour's voice, 

Bidding His wayward children 
In His wonderful love rejoice ? 

Sunbeams, and flowers, and music, 
Find a place in your heart to fill, — 

Pleasures the world can give you 
That yield to the sway of your will ; 

There is a joyous welcome 
For the friends of a passing day — 

Room for their lives to enter, 
And a place where their love may stay. 

Is there no room for Jesus — 
Not a place for the King of kings — 

Not a desire for shelter 
In the shade of His outstretched wings ? 

There will be days of shadow 
As you pass through the changeful years — 

Days when the summer glory 
Will be veiled by a mist of tears — 



ON CHRIST 139 

Days when the flowers you cherish 
In the dust at your feet will lie — 

Days when your heart will hunger 
For a love that will never die. 



Will you not need the presence 
Of the Friend who is always true ? — 

Shall not the heart of Jesus 
Be a haven of rest for you ? 



He is the same for ever ; 
Though the years may their changes bring, 

There is eternal safety 
In the love of our Saviour-King. 



CHRISTMAS THOUGHTS. 

" He came unto His own, and His own received 
Him not." 

SHALL He who comes unto His own to- 
day 
Find still no welcome — none to bid Him 

stay? 
Is there no home prepared for such a Guest — 
No place on earth wherein the Christ may 
rest ? 



140 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Despised — forsaken — must He longer stand 
Outside the door, with His dear, wounded hand 
Still knocking ? Nay ! O Christ, the Crucified, 
Come, and for ever in our hearts abide. 

And, for our Christmas gift, we pray Thee, 

bring 
Life's truest happiness to us, O King ! — 
The love that far exceeds our highest thought — 
The riches which Thy blood for us has bought. 



"An unchangeable priesthood." — Heb. vii. 24. 

KNOW that long ago I saw my sin 
A Imputed to the sinless Lamb of God, 
And I, the sinner, stood before the throne 
Clothed in the garment of His righteousness ; 
I know that God looked on me — for the sake 
Of Him who died — as one on whom the law 
Had spent its utmost power, and, satisfied, 
Had blotted out the Past for evermore ; 
Yet, as I kneel before the throne to-night, 
Am I not conscious that this soul of mine 
Has failed to keep His law throughout the day, 
And bears the stain of earth and sin again ? 
I come again — again, O Crucified — 
To hide beneath Thy blood : I need Thee still ; 
I cannot stand alone : O, be to-night 
My perfect Sacrifice, as in the Past. 



ON CHRIST 141 



"Able to keep."— 2 Tim. i. 12. 



I 



LIFT my eyes to see 
The Hand that leadeth me, 
And lo ! it is the Hand which long ago 

Was wounded for me, and I know, 
Although I tread a strange, uneven way, 
It cannot lead astray. 

A heart has planned 
My life for me ; 
I only understand 
Its lessons now in part ; 
I trust, for lo ! it is the Heart 
Which broke for me ; 
It could not be 
That He who with a love so strong and deep 
Has passed through death to save should fail to 
keep 
This soul of mine ; it could not be 
That He who gave His life for me 
Should any needful gift withhold, 
Or ever let His love grow cold. 



"His desire is toward me." — Song vii. 10. 

I HAVE heard Thy voice, O Jesus, 

Speaking to my heart ; — 
Thou hast called me from the earth-life 
To Thyself apart. 



142 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And I hear no more the music 

Of the olden song — 
Heed no more the strife and discord 

Of the restless throng — 

For Thine hand is laid upon me, 
And within Thine eyes 

Shines the love which passeth knowledge- 
Love which never dies. 

Thou hast called me, and I follow 

Blindly through the night, 
All unconscious of the darkness, 

O my Lord — my Light — 

With Thine arms of love around me, 

And Thy tender smile 
Shining ever on my pathway 

Through the little while. 

Thou hast called me, O my Jesus — 

Tell me, can it be 
That with all Thine untold riches 

Thou desirest me ? 

Is it true, in all the glory 

Of the Life divine, 
That my Lord is finding pleasure 

In this life of mine ? 



ON CHRIST 143 

Yea — I know, O my Beloved, 

Wondering I know — 
That Thy love is fixed upon me, 

And I long to grow — 

Nearer to the heart that seeks me — 

Claims me for Thine own — 
Long to live in sweet communion 

With Thyself alone. 



" I saw visions of God." — Ezek. i. 1. 

I SAW Him with His glory laid aside, 

In human weakness, bearing human pain 
And weariness and all the common ills 
That fall to such imperfect lives as ours, 
In lowliness and deep humility, 
Content to suffer all things and obey, 
To be among His followers as one 
Who serves, and proves His love by sacrifice. 

I saw Him passing by the lonely way 
Of sad Gethsemane, with all the curse 
Of mortal sin laid on Him, to the cross — 
The shameful cross whereon the cruel hands — 
Which He would fain have clasped within His 

own 
But that they would not — nailed His yielding 

Form ; 



144 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And then a darkness as of sudden night 

Fell over earth, and men's hearts failed for 

fear ; 
And voices which had mocked His agony, 
Called on the rocks and hills to cover them. 

I seemed to stand beside His sepulchre 

With those who wept for Him ; within my 

heart 
The sorrow of a lost hope lay ; I felt 
With them the incompleteness of the work 
Wrought nobly for the sake of all mankind, 
Yet, in its seeming failure, pitiful 
Beyond expression ; then we turned away 
To walk the common ways of life again, 
And left Him lying with the silent dead. 

I saw Him in the glory and the light 

Of resurrection-life, the same, and yet 

No longer in the fetters of the flesh 

His soul was held — alive for evermore, 

With death beneath His feet, an open door 

Behind Him, and His voice in triumph bade 

His followers pass through and rise with Him 

Into the glory ; then I knew at last 

That He had conquered, and the Easter joy 

Thrilled all my being with a wondrous peace — 

The last sweet vision of my risen Lord. 

So even now I see Him day by day ; 
As dear ones pass beyond the earthly life, 



ON CHRIST 145 

I look away above the quiet grave 
That hides them from my sight, toward my God, 
Who holds the keys of death within His hand, 
And know, because He lives, that these shall 
live. 

A little while — it may be soon or late — 
And I must also journey through the night : 
What then ? My life is hid with Christ in God ; 
There is no separation ; where He is 
His servant must be ; though the gates of death 
Between us lie, my soul shall pass to Him. 



SATISFIED. 

A FT ER all the restless wandering 
***' Of the sin-stained, blighted years- 
After all the weary waiting 
In the shadowland of tears — 

Now, at last, the veil is lifted, 
And our hearts are satisfied, 

For a gentle, kingly Presence 
Comes and lingers at our side ; 

So the waiting-time is over, 
And the way is always bright, 

For we look beyond the shadows 
And the loneliness of night, 

io 



146 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And we know that never — never 
Can the King forget His own, 

And no more our feet shall stumble 
On the rugged path alone — 

For along the homeward journey- 
Lies the sunshine of His smile, 

And the hand of Jesus leads us 
Safely through the " little while." 



JUSTIFIED. 

^^JOT on my guilty head 
^ ^ The wrath of God shall fall 
The Lamb has suffered in my stead ; 
His blood atones for all. 

I seek no other way ; 
My soul is satisfied 
To know that God forgives to-day, 
Because my Saviour died. 



MY CONFIDENCE. 

OVE that was strong enough to undertake 
■*" - ' The cross and death — from my unright- 
eousness 
To set me free — will surely for my sake 
Meet all beside — will shrink from nothing less ! 



ON CHRIST 147 

Then shall I fear — the while I cast my care 
On such a heart — that He will turn away- 
Forgetful of my need, and will not bear 
His part in all my life from day to day ? 



AN EASTER DREAM. 
(At Calvary.) 

O DYING Christ, 
Wilt Thou go down for ever to the tomb, 
And hide Thy glory in its silent gloom ? 
Where are the hopes Thou gavest in the days 
When at Thy side we trod the earthly ways ? 

And where are they 
Who died believing in Thy power to save — 
Who trusted Thee to call them from the grave ? 
Was their faith vain, and shall they never 

wake, 
Who gave up life and all things for Thy sake ? 

Art Thou a King ? 
Canst Thou not save Thyself in this dark 

hour ? 
O Christ, the Crucified, where is Thy power ? 
Dost Thou not hear our cry ? Canst Thou not 

see 
The breaking human hearts upraised to Thee ? 



148 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

(The Awakening.) 

OUT what is this? 
The awful dream of death has passed away ; 
The night is gone, and in the dawn of day 
We see our risen Lord, and hear His voice, 
And in the glad new hope our hearts rejoice. 

He is not dead ! 
He rose, and lives again beyond the skies ; 
So they who sleep in Him shall also rise ; 
Beyond this shadowland of sin and pain, 
Our God shall give them back to us again. 

O risen Christ — 
Without a fear we yield them up to Thee : 
Death and the grave henceforth shall only be 
Bright portals, leading through the shades of 

night, 
Into the morning of eternal light. 

THE SYMPATHY OF JESUS. 

1 T is so sweet to know — 
When we are tired, and when the hand of pain 
Lies on our hearts, and when we look in vain 
For human comfort — that the heart divine 
Still understands these cares of yours and 
mine — 



ON CHRIST 



149 



Not only understands, but, day by day, 
Lives with us while we tread the earthly way, 
Bears with us all our weariness, and feels 
The shadow of the faintest cloud that steals 
Across our sunshine — even learns again 
The depth and bitterness of human pain. 

There is no sorrow that He will not share — 
No cross — no burden for our hearts to bear 
Without His help — no care of ours too small 
To cast on Jesus ; let us tell Him all — 
Lay at His feet the story of our woes, 
And in His sympathy find sweet repose. 

THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS. 

DENEATH the shadow of the cross I 

stand — 
The cross whereon my Lord was crucified — 
And know that there my sin was put away, 
And I have life because my Saviour died. 

My peace with God is made, and I may rest, 
Clad in a spotless garment — not my own — 
Which hides away my sin and helplessness, 
And leaves me justified before the throne. 

Here at His feet by faith still let me stand, 
And, gazing on the wondrous Sacrifice, 
Remember, day by day, the changeless love 
Of Him who died to pay my ransom-price. 



i 5 o A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



TELL JESUS. 

; I *ELL Jesus when life's burden seems too 

A great for you to bear ; 

Go, lay it at the feet of Christ, and know that 

He will care ; 
And tell Him all the little things that come to 

cloud your way, 
The puzzles and perplexities that trouble you 

to-day. 



Tell Jesus all there is to tell — about your daily 

needs — 
About the dim uncertainties through which your 

pathway leads — 
About the cherished hopes that lie, crushed 

lifeless at your feet — 
The golden dreams left unfulfilled — the labour 

incomplete. 



If you could know how tenderly He makes our 
cares His own, 

You would not stand apart again and bear your 
pain alone ; 

You would not miss the joy and peace of walk- 
ing at His side — 

Of finding tempest changed for calm — and 
sorrow sanctified. 



ON CHRIST 151 

I tell Him all the story now ; no other friend 

could be, 
In morning light or evening shade, what Jesus 

is to me ; 
His human heart is still the same, to-day as 

yesterday, 
And in His love I find my rest and in His 

strength my stay. 



FOR ALL— FOR ME ! 

I SEE Thee now, 
O Christ, the Crucified : 
A crown of thorns is on Thy brow, 
And from Thy wounded hands and side 
Thy life-blood flows : I see, I know, 
That Thou hast made atonement so — 
Hast borne the curse of human sin — 
Hast died, eternal life to win 
For those whose feet have gone astray 
And trod the downward way. 

I see Thee now, 
My Christ — my Sacrifice ! 
It was my sin which pierced Thy brow ; 
The blood which paid my ransom-price 
Flowed from Thy wounds : I see, I see, 
That Thou hast borne my curse for me. 



i 5 2 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I lift my hand and take 

The gift which for Thy sake 
God offers now to all mankind — to me ; 
And I have passed from death to life with 
Thee. 



" For in that He Himself hath suffered, being 
tempted, He is able to succour them that are 
tempted." — Heb. ii. 18. 

DE CAUSE Thou also hast been tempted — 
*-* tried — 

Because Thy feet have trod this bitter way — 
O human Christ, we turn to Thee to-day ; 
In our temptation be Thou at our side. 

So, passing with Thee through the fiery strife, 
We also shall the same deep lesson learn, 
And, stronger than of old, from trial turn 
To strengthen others in the storm of life. 



" Casting all your care upon Him." — z Pet. v. 7. 

C\ HEART, that in thy lonely grief 
^ to-night 

Dost mourn for some lost joy, or for the light 
Of bygone days and dreams, or some sweet face 
Missed for awhile from its accustomed place, 



ON CHRIST 153 

If only thou couldst lay thy empty hands 
Within the hands of Jesus as He stands 
Unchanged beside thee, if thine eyes could see 
The eyes that wait to meet a glance from thee, 

If only thou wouldst lift this weight of care 
And lay it at His feet, and kneeling there 
Tell Him the story of thy secret pain, 
I know that hope would dawn for thee again. 

Thou dost not know Him, standing thus apart 
And sorrowing alone ; shall not the Heart 
Which broke on Calvary to set thee free 
Be trusted with an easier cross for thee ? 

O cast on Him thy burden ; take the rest 
He waits to give, and thou shalt find the best 
Not buried in the Past for evermore, 
But thine in fuller measure on before. 



WAITING FOR THE DAWN. 

AMID earth's toil and weariness we watch 
for Thee, O King, 
And know that some unclouded morn our 

promised Lord will bring ; 
We wait until Thy voice shall break across the 

restless strife — 
Until Thy hand shall guide our feet to realms 
of endless life. 



154 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

We long to stand within Thy light — to see 
Thee face to face — 

Beyond this shadowJand of life to find a resting- 
place ; 

We turn from earth unsatisfied ; — we strain our 
eager eyes, ' 

To watch the dawning of the day break over 
Paradise. 

O come and claim Thy ransomed ones, for we 

have waited long 
To welcome Thee, our risen Lord, with glad, 

triumphant song : 
Be Thou our guide while yet our feet must 

tread the earthly way, 
And lead Thy pilgrims through the night to 

everlasting day. 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH 
HIM 



155 



MY DESIRE. 

T WOULD that my soul might love Thee 
more ; 

I hunger and thirst to be 
For ever at rest and satisfied, 

O Jesus, my Lord, in Thee — 

Set free from the things that lie between — 

The hindrances on my way — 
The hands that are clasped about my own — 

The hearts that would lead astray. 

I would that my soul were dead to earth 

And only alive to Thine — 
Were emptied of all that holds Thy place, 

And filled with the Life divine. 



THE STORY OF THE RISEN LIFE. 



B 



• ECAUSE He lives 
I shall live also ; yea, I live to»day ! 
His own — His risen life — to me He gives, — 
Not as He breathed on this frail form of clay 

157 



158 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And gave me life — 
Life — threescore years and ten — perchance four- 
score 
Of mingled light and shade, 
Of flowers that bloom and fade, 
Of hopes which dawn and pass away, 
Of beauty blighted by decay, 
A day of calm — a night of strife, 

And then — no more : 
I wonder, is it worth the strain 
Of outstretched hands and fevered brain, 
Of eager hope and vain regret — 
This prize on which our hearts are set — 
The joy which waits us here and there — 
The freedom after years of care, 
Since summer days so soon pass by, 
And all we love on earth must die ? 

If God — who understands — 
Had meant but this for me — no more, 
To teach me how to love Him and adore, 
And then to put aside my clinging hands 
For ever — if He would not satisfy, 
In some sweet By and By, 
This love of mine which burns toward His own, 
And sees and seeks its end in Him alone, — 
If He had wakened, nourished, kept — 
Within the heart which sometime slept, 
This consciousness, however dim, 
Of possibilities and powers 
Beyond these little lives of ours — 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM 159 

If He had breathed in us the thought 
By which our human souls have sought 
For nearer fellowship with Him — 
Yet meant the thought to perish so, 
Imperfect, as our life below — 
My soul would pray for sleep again to-night, 
Would crave forgetfulness — I could not bear 
To see Him only in the distance there — 
To know Him only in His holy height 
Of majesty divine, 
And never nearer — never mine. 

I know — I know 
One lives who died for me, and even so 
I live to-day : 
Earth mists about me lie, 
Yet fainter than at dawn and by and by, 
As in the noonday light, 
Fade the last lingering shades of night, 
So shall these shadows pass away, 
Lost in the everlasting day. 
This life of mine — 
Imperfect — incomplete below, 
Some day shall grow 
Into the likeness of the Life divine ! 
What will it mean ? Shall I who, day by day, 
Kneel, conscious of my failure, at His throne, 
And trust the Lamb who bears my sin away, 
And dare to count His righteousness my own, — ■ 
Shall I grow like Him, and for ever be 
From all the bondage of the earth-life free ? 



160 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I cannot reach the height of such a thought, 
My soul is lost in wonder : has He bought 
Not only life for me, but this — 
This crowning bliss ? 

The years go by, 
And some who tread life's pathway at my side 
Look hopelessly toward the eventide, 

And fear to die : 
There is no fear ; there is no death for me ! 
I face the great Hereafter, unafraid : 
What if my dearest flowers must droop and 

fade ? 
Mine in eternal beauty they shall be — 
In resurrection-life, surpassing fair, 

And every onward step shall bear 
This soul of mine — not into twilight shade, 

Where all things pass away — 
Not into weariness and life's decay, 
But nearer to the breaking of the chain, 
And nearer to the lifting of the veil, 
And nearer to the perfect life in Him : 
Awhile I wait ; awhile my eyes are dim ; 
Yet He is true ; I cannot wait in vain. 
His promise cannot fail. 

In this new life by which I live to-day, 
Each cross becomes a crown : I do not bear 

AJone a single care, 
But He who walks beside me on my way, 
L ifts all my burden — in the hour of pain, 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM 161 

Draws nearer, teaching me ' 
In all life's discipline His hand to see ; 
And that which seemed my loss, becomes my 
gain. 

And I have seen 
Dear forms pass from my side, 
And time and distance roll between, 
Perchance through all the years to hide 

Their lives from mine — and yet, 
Through all the sadness of regret, 
Through all the bitterness of tears — 
I wait with patience : What are years ? 
Eternity is mine, and they and I, 
Though parted for awhile, yet, by and by, 
Shall reach the self-same goal, and there at last, 
Renew the happy friendship of the Past — 
Grown sweeter, dearer far, 
Since discord cannot mar 
The perfect harmony about the throne, 
Where pure hearts know as also they are known. 
And then, on that fair shore, 
At last with undimmed sight, 
I shall behold the King, and evermore 
Dwell with Him in the light. 

O Hands that bore my burden — Feet that 

trod 
The way of death to bring me to my God — 
O Eyes that wept for me — O Lips that spoke 
The word of life to me — O Heart that broke 

ii 



162 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Beneath my curse — O Jesus crucified — 
Heaven will be mine, I shall be satisfied 
In Thy dear Presence : 

If to-day I seem 
So near to Thee — and this is but a dream, 
A shadow of the Real — what shall it be 
To grow still nearer, to be lifted higher 
Above the clouds — to find my heart's desire 
All— all fulfilled in Thee? 



"For ye are dead." — Col. iii. 3. 

T REMEMBER in the restless hour 

•*• When my soul is battling with the power 

Of an old temptation — when I dream 

Of the things which lie behind, and seem 

Even sweeter, dearer than before, — 

When beneath their charm I turn once more, 

And my feet a fairer path would tread — 

I remember always — I am dead ! 



Shall I count as dearest treasures now 

Thorns which pierced in death my Saviour's 

brow — 
Nails which wounded Him — the cruel cross ? 
Nay, henceforth I count them all as loss — 
Dead — with Him — for His sake, and I see 
Only One — the Lamb who died for me. 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM 163 



"We glory in tribulation." — Rom. v. 3. 



I 



ALSO glory in my tribulation ; 
It seems no longer dark and strange to me : 
Who would not choose an empty heart, O Jesus, 
If such an emptiness be filled by Thee ? 

Who would not follow Thee amid the shadows 
If only there unclouded shines Thy light? — 

Or, who would seek to tread the flowery valley 
If Thou art only on the mountain-height ? 

If in my loneliness I find Thee nearest, 
It is not hard for me to walk alone ; 

And even weariness is fraught with pleasure 
Since then Thy sweetest rest becomes mine 
own. 

Lord — my Lord — I understand the meaning 
Of things which once were mysteries to me : 

1 love the hand which leads me through the 

darkness ; 
I do not fear to be alone with Thee. 



THE WAY OF THE CROSS. 

AH ! who shall solve this problem for me — 
who 
Unveil this mystery ? Lo ! when I seek 
For light, the darkness meets me ; when I speak, 



164 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

A long unanswering silence, like a cloud, 

Lies, O my God, between Thy mind and mine ! 

I tread a path where oftentimes of old 

My feet have stumbled ; all around I see 

The mighty throng who, since the world began, 

By life or death have suffered martyrdom — 

Some waking to a life of such deep pain, 

Or such deformity of mind or frame, 

Or lovelessness, or such a weight of care 

As makes existence but a living death — 

Some called to agony of fiery stake, 

Or flood, or sword, or torture at the hands 

Of Thine own deadliest enemies, and all 

In patient silence laying down their lives 

Unquestioning, because they own Thee God. 

And I, who also dare to call myself 
A child of Thine, yet so far on my way 
Have met but common ills and suffered pain 
Less hard to bear, beholding lives like these, 
Cry out in vain rebellion for their sake ; 
Nay — not for vengeance — what is that to me ? 
It would not heal the wounds nor right the 

wrong, 
Nor make a fairer heaven for those whose feet 
By these rough paths have reached the other 

shore ; 
Else might my soul therein some solace seek : 
My God, this sharpest sorrow pierces me — 
This, that Thou bidd'st me look on scenes like 

these, 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM 165 

My own heart torn and bleeding with the strain 
Of my deep sympathy, and yet believe 
That which I learnt in childhood, ere my feet 
Passed by sad paths of knowledge to a place 
Of strange, dim shadowland — the old-time truth 
Unquestioned — all-embracing — God is love. 

Ah ! dare I, standing in this vale of tears 
With these pure lives about me, crushed by grief, 
Or pain, or lifelong torture, and the graves 
Of those who died by violence around, 
Dare I to cling to this sweet thought of 

Thee ?— 
Or is it but a passing dream which lives 
In unawakened hearts ? My God — my God — 
It were not so incomprehensible, 
If they who turn a deaf ear to Thy voice, 
And break Thy law, and trample on the blood 
That would have sealed their pardon, thus 

should meet 
The just reward of all their sin — but these : 
Can Love forget her dearest and her best ? 

My eyes were holden : Lo ! there shines a light 
Through all the valley, and I see the Form 
Of One who bears a heavier cross, and yet 
His brow is lit by such a radiant joy 
As shines from heaven alone ; and as He walks 
Amid the suffering throng, He lifts His hand 
And points them onward, upward to the goal ; 
And in their eyes, turned ever unto Him, 



166 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I see a sweet reflection of the light 
That fills His own, and on their lips a smile, 
As if the crosses which they bear were light 
Compared with such strong faith and hope and 
love. 

My heart has learnt the secret ; — they who 

seek 
The kingdom, needs must reach it through this 

way, 
The highway of the cross ; the path by which 
Their Leader trod, is still the only road 
By which His followers go ; as unto Him 
The world was but a wilderness, and led 
Through dark Gethsemane and Calvary, 
So, sometime, ere the risen life be ours 
In all its perfect fulness, must our feet 
Through their dim shadows follow Him, and so 
The world which hated Him and laid the 

cross 
On Him, will hate each child of His, and lay 
A cross — albeit lighter than His own — 
On us, and bid us bear it to the end. 
What then ? The passion in my heart is hushed ; 
The questioning is silenced : What am I 
That, if the highest good be only reached 
Through deepest sorrow, loneliness, and loss, 
I should withhold from some, whom He would 

have 
The nearest to Himself in heaven, the cross 
By which alone such fellowship they win ? 



ON FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM 167 



THE SECRET OF JOY. 

DECAUSE, by faith in Christ, my soul has 

passed 
From death to life — because I know that nought 
In earth or hell can separate my soul 
From His great love, or blot me from His 

thought 
For one brief moment — in my heart I hold 
A peace, a happiness which nevermore 
Shall pass from me : I am as safe to-day 
As if my feet already touched the shore 
Of heaven, and — O thought surpassing sweet — 
As perfectly arrayed in God's pure sight 
As there I shall be — since the robe I wear 
To-day is Christ's own robe of spotless white. 



"IN HIS LIKENESS." 

"For if we have been planted together in the 
likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness 
of His resurrection." — Rom. vi. 5. 

T SHALL not perish ; — only like a sleep 
A Calm death may wrap me in its silence 

deep, 
Until the dawn of everlasting day 
Shall bid the earthly shadows pass away. 



168 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I know that when the glorious morn shall break, 
As from a quiet slumber I shall wake, 
For ever in God's presence to abide, 
And in His likeness to be satisfied. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 



u» 



THE CONTRAST. 

npHE world, what is it at its best ? — 

A It is a sea of wild unrest ; 
It is an ever-changing sky ; 
It is a dream that passes by ; 
It is a shadow of the Real, 
Which men pursue with hopeless zeal ; 
And they who trust its fickle smile 
May taste its pleasures for awhile — 
May sometimes see a ray of light 
And here and there a blossom bright, 
Yet all the time must surely find 
A secret fear which lurks behind — 
A hidden thorn in every flower — 
A cloud on every sunny hour ; 
And always at the end must wake 
To night whereon no dawn shall break. 

The peace of God is calm and deep — 
A sea where no rough tempests sweep — 
A happy sleep — a cloudless sky — 
A light whereon no earth-mists lie. 
Here is my rest ; no haunting fear 
Can reach my quiet spirit here. 
171 



172 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

I look from my abiding-place 
Away into my Fathers face, 
And read no anger there for me, 
Because His eyes can always see 
The Christ who in His presence stands, 
With pleading eyes and outstretched hands, 
And speaks, as with His dying breath, 
The peace He purchased by His death. 

And always, always, everywhere 
I find a patient, tender care, 
Which guards this helpless life of mine ; 
I find a hand with power divine, 
Which guides my footsteps day by day 
And holds, and will not let me stray. 
The peace of God is deep and sweet : 
O perfect peace — O rest complete — 
Calm, unafraid I meet the night ; — 
Beyond lies everlasting light. 



O 



"Not of works." — Eph. ii. 9. 



UR silver and our gold — 
Our years of toil, and all the treasure-store 
Of our full hearts we bring ; yea, even more, 
Our lives — ourselves — our all ! 
Yet is the sacrifice too small 

To put away our sin, 
And everlasting life to win. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 173 

Our Father knows 
How we have laboured patiently to gain 
A place among His children — yet in vain ; 
He sees our fruitless efforts to atone 
For all the Past — the wrong that we have 

done, 
And, in His pity, makes another way — 
Gives what we cannot purchase — stands to-day 
With His full hands outstretched, and on His 

lips the cry, 
" Let him that hath no money come and buy." 



THE REPLY. 



Y< 



OU would not heed me, Dear ; 
I told you of the thorns which lay entwined 
Amid these roses : Now you come to me 
With hands all torn and bleeding, and your 

eyes 
Dim with repentant tears : What shall I say ? 
I cannot heal the wounds : Child, do you know 
That there are many, farther on life's road, 
Who bear the scars of wounds which they 

received 
In early days, because they would not heed 
The kindly voice which would have spared 

them pain, 
But turned to gather flowers along the way, 
And afterwards found cruel thorns thereon ? 



174 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



EARTH MISTS. 

COMETIMES our hands have touched — our 
^ eyes have met — 

My soul looked into yours, and yet — and yet — 
I could not speak my thoughts ; I know not 

why : 
I wonder, Dearest, in God's By and By, 
If you will understand — if you will know 
The depths of feeling which I could not show — 
If you will read at last in His clear light 
The words my lips would never form aright. 

I know that there are clouds which lie to-day 
Between our lives, and yet I cannot say 
The words I long so much for you to hear : 
I wonder, when you come to meet me, Dear, 
Beyond these mists of life, will you and I 
So much remember still of things gone by, 
That we shall turn to read with clearer eyes 
The story of to-day — the Real which lies 
Beneath the mask of seeming — all unknown 
To any human heart except our own, — 
The passion veiled by calm — the proud, strong 

will 
Held by its own great strength — the storms 

which thrill 
The soul's strange depths — the unexpressed 

desire 
For truer friendship, and the hidden fire 



OTHER THOUGHTS i 75 

Of love which burns with deathless power below 
The unrevealing eyes : I know — I know 
That God will break the silence then, and lift 
The clouds which now across our sunshine drift, 

And I must wait till they shall pass away 

Wait as He waited— as He waits to-day, 
Misunderstood by those who call Him Friend, 
For us to learn His purpose in the end. 



"ONE THING." 

''This one thing I do, forgetting those thines 
which are behind, and reaching forth unto those 
things which are before, I press toward the mark 
for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ 
Jesus." — Phil. iii. 13, 14. 

1 HIS one thing let us do ; 

Henceforward with one heart and mind 

Forgetting all that lies behind, 
And reaching forth unto 
The things before — let us press on 
Until our glorious prize be won. 

Heedless of toil, and pain, and strife, 
Athirst for more abundant life, 
Desiring that our souls may grow 
Into His likeness, and to know 
As we are known, so let us press 
On in the path of holiness. 



176 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

This one thing let us do, 
And through the years that come and 

go 
Our consecrated lives shall know 
The fulness of our Father's love — 
The depths below and heights above — 
Our shelter in His secret place — 
Our joy, the shining of His face. 



DO HEARTS GROW OLD ? 



D" 



|0 hearts grow old, I wonder ? 
Will mine grow old, some day ? 
I know that life's fair summer 

Must quickly pass away ; 
I know that snows of winter 

About my head may lie, 
And from these eyes, so surely 
The light of youth must die. 



Do hearts grow old, I wonder, 

Through all the changing years, 
That fill the earth with sunshine, 

Or veil its light with tears ? 
Shall we, who love the morning, 

Be ever satisfied 
To dwell amid the shadows 

Which fall at eventide ? 



OTHER THOUGHTS 177 

Do hearts grow old, I wonder, 

And all the days seem long, 
When life has lost its freshness 

And ceased to be a song ? — 
When on the sunny landscape 

The mist of evening lies, 
And in the sombre twilight 

The sweetest music dies ? 

Do hearts grow old, I wonder — 

These strong, young hearts that thrill 
And throb with proud ambition, 

Wild hope and restless will ? 
When all the work is finished, 

And all the storms are past, 
When hands and feet are weary — 

Do hearts grow old, at last ? 



1893. 



THE ANSWER. 



*^TOT always! I have waited through long 
-*" ^ years 

To find my answer : Now, at last, I know — 
For I am watching lives that come and go 
About my own, through mingled smiles and 

tears, 
And some there are who will not let the blight 
Of earthly cares, which come alike to all, 
About their spirits like dark shadows fall, 
But always seem to dwell within the light. 

\2 



178 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And if we see, we soon forget 
That these are old ; — no sad regret 
For fading beauty lingers now ; — 
There is a charm on lip and brow 
Which youth had never written there — 
As if the life had been so fair, 
Through all the years, that Time in vain 
Had touched it, and the hand of Pain 
Had pierced it often — only to refine — 
And stamp the likeness of the Life divine. 

Lessons, hard to learn, and long, 
Never dimmed the summer gladness, 
And the undertone of sadness 

Never hushed the joyous song. 

These have passed along the years — 
Though they held earth's pleasures lightly- 
Always hopefully and brightly, 

Rather known by smiles than tears — 

Making sunshine in the rain — 
Always, through each day of sorrow, 
Looking for a bright to-morrow — 

Thinking less of loss than gain. 

And I think that in their eyes, 
As they face the sunset glory, 
I can read the happy story 

Of the land beyond the skies. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 179 

For these — yes, and we also — if we will, 
Who soon must likewise journey down the 

hill, 
Shall find at eventide the promised light, 
And pass toward the morning — not the 

night — 
The morning, wherein we shall find at last 
Our dream of life fulfilled — not as the Past 
Had promised — but as God unto His own 
Returns the gifts they offer at His throne — 
Imperfect, poor, yet all their treasure-store — 
By giving them His best for evermore. 

1903. 



REALITIES. 

TRACTS are still facts ! They do not alter 

when 
The questioning and doubtful minds of men 
Refuse so to accept them : Truth likewise 
Is always Truth — though our hearts recognise 
It not as such — and it is well to know 
That Right is what God made it long ago, 
And not a fancy of our passing mood : 
We judge between life's evil and its good, 
Not by what is, but by what seems to be, 
And only see as little children see — 
Whose dreams are goals to which their steps 

they bend ! 
God, seeing farther, — even to the end — 



180 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And understanding all things, as we pray 
For that which seems our highest good to-day, 
Proves His great love — denies our blind request, 
And gives us only what is truly best. 



"Hath everlasting life." — John v. 24. 

*^TO longer in uncertainty I wait, 

■ ^ And tremble lest my soul should fail at 

last, 
In spite of all her toiling in the Past, 
To win an entrance at the City's gate : 
I live, I live ! Yea, life to-day is mine, 
And shall be mine for ever ; Christ for me 
Hath passed through death to life, and I am 

free, 
And live already in the Life divine. 



"Why dost thou judge thy brother? " — Rom. xiv. 10. 

' I *HOU standest falsely in the place of God — 
Condemning harshly this thy fellow-man ! 
I know that he hath fallen from his place, 
Effaced the image of his Maker, stamped 
Sometime upon himself, and stained with sin 
The pure, white garment which he might have 
kept j 



OTHER THOUGHTS 181 

But what is that to thee, that thou dost point 
The finger of thy heartless scorn at him, 
And lower trample him beneath thy feet, 
Lest he should seek to rise from dust and shame ? 
Is thine own life so pure that thou canst look 
Within thine heart and see no passion there, 
Held by thy stronger will (yet striving still 
To bind thee in its chains), which wakes in thee 
A thrill of pity for this weaker one ? 
Or, if thy soul be white, how came it so 
But by the gift of God ? — And what hast thou 
That thou hast not received ? Say, wilt not thou 
Stretch forth thine hand toward him, so per- 
chance 
Thy strength may help his weakness — or at least, 
By that great love which hides thy sin-stained 

Past, 
Weave for his guilt a kindly covering 
To hide it from the eyes of other men ? 



"Vanity of vanities." — Eccles. xii. 8. 

"The thing which hath been, it is that which 
shall be ; and that which is done is that which shall 
be done : and there is no new thing under the 
sun." — Eccles. i. 9. 

1 HE world we know 
Is strangely like the world of long ago ! 
And human nature, in whatever guise 
It may appear, is much the same likewise. 



182 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

There are the grave and gay — the weak and 

strong, 
And there are those who think of right and wrong 
As only names — or never think at all ! 
And those who, unafraid, at Duty's call, 
Thrust self and useless questioning aside 
With ready hand, and take her for their guide. 

And there are eyes that smile and hearts that 

break 
Beneath the mask of sunshine, for the sake 
Of some dead hope, or for some sad regret — 
And some who can so easily forget 
Life's summer dream and all they once held 

dear — 
Who drown their sorrow in a passing tear, 
And never learn that they alone can know 
Life's sweetest bliss, who taste its deepest woe ! 

We know that, ever since in His great plan 
The thought of God became a living man 
In His own image formed, and with a heart 
Harmonious with, and of His own a part, 
Some souls — partakers of the common fall — 
Have striven yet to keep alive through all 
That holy likeness to the Life divine ! 
And some have bowed their knees before the 

shrine 
Of wealth, and others — Pleasure : These have 

lost 
The highest Good, who would not pay its cost. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 183 

It is the same to-day ; a few will scale 

The mountain-heights of life, and others fail 

Because the climb needs effort, and they lack 

The energy to tread so rough a track. 

It is no new, strange road by which our feet 

Pass onward to the goal where all must meet. 

The cold, still forms beneath the churchyard 

sod, 
In days gone by, the self-same pathway trod ! 
From dawn until the setting of the sun 
We only do what other hands have done ! 
We shape our lives as other lives have taught, 
Inherit from the dead our noblest thought 
And find ideals amongst them for to-day. 
What then ? Do we find satisfaction ? Nay — 
But ever onward press, and, soon or late, 
See at our journey's end the Golden Gate. 
And what beyond ? We know not — save that 

there 
All that has seemed most beautiful and fair, 
And farthest from our reach on earth, shall be 
Within our hands at last, and we shall see 
Our dear, lost hopes fulfilled — our heart's desire, 
Not dead, as we have thought, but lifted 

higher 
Than we can reach to-day — yet only so 
That we, still seeking, to their height may 

grow — 
Lest, blindly, we be satisfied with aught 
Less than God's best for us — His highest 

Thought. 



184 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

And there are bonds that chain us — heart to 

heart — 
By ties most sacred — severed far apart — 
And purest friendships changed, we know not 

how, 
Or wholly broken, or imperfect now, 
But never lost to us : For these we wait, 
Until, for evermore, beyond the Gate, 
Those whom we love shall come to us again ; 
For we have never learnt to love in vain 
The true and good ! Such love can never die — 
Save as ourselves — to live beyond the sky. 

"Be not deceived." — Gal. vi. 7. 

COMETIME, O Soul, on thee shall fall 
^ The voice of God — the final call 
To life or death for evermore — 
Not to repentance as before. 

Who art thou ? Canst thou bear His light, 

And stand before His searching sight ? 

Is thy hope built on Him alone 

Who pleads for sinners at the throne ? — 

Or dost thou rest on aught beside 

The merits of the Crucified ? 

Soul, know thyself; the time draws near 
When thou before Him shalt appear, 
And only His appointed way 
Can save thee in that awful day 



OTHER THOUGHTS 185 



"Judge not." — Matt. vii. x. 

ET us believe the best ; there are enough, 
*^* you know, 
Judging by what they see — wronging each 

other so ; 
Let us believe the best; there are enough to 

blame — 
Numbers to think the worst — numbers to brand 

a name. 



Many a soul would rise out of his dark despair, 
If there were only one just to believe and 

care — 
Out on the losing side, daring to take his 

stand — 
Heedless of what men say, holding a brother's 

hand. 



" By life or by death." — Phil. i. 20. 

' I 'HE years so quickly pass ; it seems to me 

A That at the longest life can only be 
A little while ; if I should live until 
The sun sinks down behind the farthest hill, 
The time would not be long ere I should 

stand 
Within the glory of the sinless land. 



1 86 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Or, if the silence should be soon, and I 
At noon amid the quiet shadows lie, 
With life and love and all things fair and sweet 
Above me still, and my work incomplete, 
As we judge incompleteness (who can tell 
The thoughts of God?) methinks it would be 
well. 



" Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also 
reap." — Gal. vi. 7. 



I 



KNOW to-night 
That you are suffering because the seed, 
By your hand sometime sown, took root and 

grew, 
And now is yielding fruit a hundredfold. 
What then ? — How can I help or comfort you ? 
My heart seems almost breaking as I see 
The ruin of the life, once pure and bright, 
Now hopeless, joyless, ere its youth is past. 
I cry to God for you — a pleading prayer 
Wrung from the depths of love and passion, 

stirred 
By my deep pity, and His answer thrills 
The awful silence — " As a man hath sown 
So he must reap," and in my heart I know 
That my arms, thrown about you, cannot break 
The force of such a blow, and my great love, 
My prayer, and my compassion, cannot change 



OTHER THOUGHTS 187 

The meaning of His law : God may forgive — 

Yea, has forgiven for the sake of Christ ; 

Yet, all through life, and in the strange dim 

land 
Hereafter, must the harvest still go on — 
The reaping of the fields which you have 

sown, 
And all your days henceforward must be passed 
Beneath the shadow of a sad remorse, 
Until at last He give forgetfulness. 



"Peace . . . and goodwill toward men." — Luke 
ii. 14. 

npHOUGH the seasons are full of changes, 

A And the old gives place to the new, 
Yet I send you the same sweet message 

From a heart that is warm and true ; 
For I know that the old-time greeting 

Is the best I can wish for you. 



"To him that overcometh." — Rev. iii. 21. 

I KNOW— I know ! 
The world is all around us, and the glare 
Of dazzling earth-lights meets us everywhere ; 
And other hands are holding yours and mine, 
And other hearts, beside the Heart divine, 



1 88 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Weave soft, sweet charms around us, day by day ; 
And ever, as we seek the upward way, 
Unconsciously, the dearest at our side 
Win our affections from the Crucified. 

I know — I know ! 
To-night our souls may burn with passion, filled 
By strange emotion — all our life be thrilled 
By an intense desire toward Him, stirred 
Perhaps by living echoes from the Word, 
Or by some holy work for His sake wrought, 
Or some great sacrifice, or by a thought 
Straight from the Heart of God : Perhaps to- 
night, 
Without a cloud to hide Him from our sight, 
We see the Lamb on whom our guilt was laid 
And glory in the full atonement made, 
And, standing in the shadow of the cross, 
Learn how to count all other things as loss. 

I know how morning dawns, grey, desolate, 
And countless duties on its threshold wait, 
And we must face realities, and bear 
The burden of the day — its toil and care ; 
Then who shall wonder if our heart's desire 
Lies crushed beneath the weight, and if the fire 
Of zeal burns low, until we cease to give 
Our first, best love to Him by whom we live ? — 
Until, forgotten, even at our side 
They walk, who know not that for them He 
died. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 189 

He also knows ! The self- same path He trod ; — 
No storm can reach us, which the Son of God 
Has not first felt ; these lives of yours and 

mine 
Can meet no sorrow which the Life divine 
Has not already borne : Let us not dream, 
When tempests rage about us, and we seem 
To sink beneath them — when our faith grows 

dim — 
That life held out a smoother path for Him. 

One strange, grand law, by which all human 

life 
Is ruled, demands that, through the fiercest 

strife 
We reach the deepest peace — that only they 
Receive the highest good, who dare to pay 
The fullest price — that he who bears the cross 
Shall wear the crown, and he who suffers loss 
For Christ's sake, shall receive eternal gain : 
So, only they — who through the awful strain 
Of struggling with temptation's darkest power 
Have won the victory — shall in that hour 
The joy of triumph learn, which none can know 
Who have not proved their strength against the 

foe. 

" To him that overcometh," not to him 
Who idly lets his lamp of faith burn dim, 
And shrinks in selfish terror from the fight — 
To him who strives to keep his armour bright, 



igo A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Though clinging earth-mists hang about his way, 
The olden promise comes again to-day — 
He shall be counted worthy soon to stand 
With Christ the Conqueror, at God's right hand. 



PASSING JOYS. 

TF, through the shadows cold and grey, 

*- The sun sent forth a glorious ray, 

And then recalled it, should we fret, 

And lose its radiance in regret ? 

How blind we are — to whom once more 

The skies are cloudy as before, 

Or even darker : Can we find 

No gleam of brightness left behind ? — 

No promise for the days which lie 

Before us, in the By and By ? 

And if, across these paths of ours, 
Where thorns, perchance, instead of flowers 
Have seemed to flourish in the Past, 
God sends some strange, new light at last, 
And then withdraws it — shall our way 
Be harder now than yesterday ? — 
And shall we let the shadow fall 
About our lives, and darken all ? 

Nay — rather let the afterglow 
Cling round us, as we onward go, 



OTHER THOUGHTS 191 

And life be sweeter everywhere 
Because its memories are fair. 
Moreover, once we knew not how 
To hope for joys untasted ; — now, 
If loss its highest lesson teach, 
We know in part and, knowing, reach 
Beyond these mists of human pain, 
To find our heart's desire again. 



LIFE'S EVENSONG. 

CING me an old song, Darling — 

A song of the bygone days ; 
Nothing can thrill my spirit 
Like one of the olden lays ! 
Nothing can bear me backward 
Far over the tide of years, 
Like the sweet strains of music 
Which break through the night of tears. 

Sing me an old song, Darling — 
The song that my heart loves best : 
Here in the dusky gloaming, 
Perhaps it may bring me rest. 
Sing, till I dream of faces 
Which smile from the days of yore ; 
Sing, till I hear glad voices 
Which speak from the distant shore. 



iQ2 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

Sing me an old song, Darling : 
It may be the charm will cast 
Peace on the fevered spirit 
Which craves for a golden Past. 
So shall the dear, lost voices 
Be heard in the well-known strain ; 
So shall those angel faces 
Come back to my heart again. 

Sing me an old song, Darling. 
Ah ! sing for my evensong 
One that shall link life's morning 
To lands where my heart, ere long, 
All through the grand Forever 
Shall know, as in days of old, 
Those who are waiting for me — 
Just there through the gates of gold. 



"Less than the least." — Eph. iii. 8. 

f~*i IVE me not honour ; think not well of me, 
^-* You who must soon behold me in the 

light 
Which shines about the throne — not as I seem, 
But as I truly know myself to be 
And as my Father sees me — least indeed 
And lowest in His kingdom. Think of me 
As one who sometime stood far off from God — 
Poor — blind — until He laid His healing hand 



OTHER THOUGHTS 193 

On me and gave me sight and untold wealth, 
And led me to His house, and over me 
Stretched out the banner of His mighty love, 
And gave me this great honour — not to win 
Praise for myself but glory for His name. 



"Of the earth, earthy." — i Cor. xv. 47. 

' I V HE world will seek its own ; 

A It needs must be, 

If I would follow Thee, 
That I must often walk alone. 
It needs must be, 
If I am true to Thee, 
That they who shun the truth will turn 
Away from me, lest they should learn 
That which they dare not know — 
That which would tear the veil aside 
By which they seek to hide 
The guilt which lurks below. 
Yet by and by 
The Judge's eye 
Shall pierce them through and through, and read 
Each secret thought and word and deed. 
The world will seek its own ; 
The children of the night 
No fellowship have ever known 

With children of the light. 
Then shall I marvel that to-day 
The upward path must be a lonely way ? 

1 3 



i 9 4 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



MY BIRTHDAY WISH. 

T HAVE no dearer birthday wish for thee 
-*- Than that the presence of the King may 
be, 

To-day and evermore, 
The sweetest, brightest joy of all thy life — 
May give to thee, through all the days of strife, 
A peace unknown before — 

So that the years may take their swift-winged 

flight, 
And leave thy soul unsullied by the blight 
Breathed from a world of sin — 
So that, when shadows fall about thy way, 
Thy heart may hold the changeless light of 
day — 

The love of God within. 



"He that rejecteth Me." — John xii. 48. 

T F in the judgment day He speak to thee 

*- That awful word, " Depart ! " — it will not 

be 
For sins thou hast committed, though the stain 
Of crime be on thy hands, and heart and brain 
Be haunted by remorse, and all the Past 
Its guilty memories around thee cast ; 



OTHER THOUGHTS 195 

I say that even these, with all their weight, 
Could never close against thee heaven's gate, 
Since, when the Lamb of God atonement made, 
The curse of human sin on Him was laid. 

Within thyself, thy condemnation lies ; — 
Thou speakest thine own doom ! Have not 

thine eyes 
Beheld the day, yet turned toward the night 
Because they loved it rather than the light ? 
The Christ Himself became thy sacrifice — 
Paid with His life the utmost awful price 
To put away thy sin, and set thee free, 
To purchase everlasting life for thee ; — 
And thou hast seen the cross, and heard His 

call, 
And yet, O Soul, thou hast rejected all — 
Turned from the path of life He bade thee tread, 
By conscious choice, to seek thy death instead ! 

" This is the condemnation, that light is 
come into the world, and men loved darkness 
rather than light." — John iii. 19. 



"By evil report — by good report." — 2 Cor. vi. 8. 



I 



T matters not 
What men may think of us ! To-day they 

praise — 
To-morrow, blame — and so through all our day*' 



196 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

We lift our eyes to catch the smile of one 
For something said or done, 
And meet another's frown : 

It is surpassing strange 
That we, who know full well how all may 

change, 
Yet care so much and pay a price so high 
To win the honour which so soon must die — 
Which is not worth a passing thought, 
Far less to be thus dearly bought. 

But let it be our chief concern to see, 
Whatever we are called to do or be, 
That all our lives may bear the pure high light 
Which shines from yonder Throne — that from 

His sight 
No coward thought need shrink, in trembling 

fear — 
To stand before our God with conscience clear, 
And only by His standard set our own, 
And live as they who seek His smile alone. 



A REVERIE. 



I 



REMEMBER a day 
When I stood at the Gate, looking over life's 
way, 

And the blossoms were sweet 
As they grew at my feet, 



OTHER THOUGHTS 197 

And I shrank with an undefined feeling of 
dread, 
From the road which I knew I must 
tread ; 

For it seemed, 
As I dreamed, 
Where the sunshine was bright, 
That the pathway would lead me away from 
the light. 

I remember, that day, 
My desire was to stay 
With my treasures in hand ; 
Yet I knew I must pass to that far-away land ; 

I must pass where the sky 
Seemed to darken, and clouds on the pathway 
to lie, 

For the tide of the years 
Is not stayed by our tears ; 
There is never a day when the light of the 
noon 
' Does not fade into twilight full soon. 

If I could have foreseen, 
If I might have looked over the years that were 
lying between, 
Then I should not have trembled, I know, 
As I thought of the change which my life must 
so soon undergo : 

I am glad ! I am glad ! 
For it is not a time to be sad : 



198 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

These are better by far than the days of the 

Past 
For it is as if dreaming were changed to 

beholding at last, 
And it is as if all that I held and rejoiced over 

there, 
Though I know that the days of the old life 

were wondrously fair, 
Were as buds of these beautiful flowers, 
And the sunshine, as that of the earliest hours 
Of the day whose full glory is over me now : 
Earth is brighter to-day, though I scarcely know 

how, 
For the scenes are the same that I loved long 

ago, 
And the friends who are dearest of all that I 

know, 
Are the same that of old I loved best — 
Only tried in life's furnace as gold, and refined 

by the test. 

I have passed through the Gate 
Where I lingered of late ; 
I have seen that the land 
Where I dreaded to stand 

Is not haunted by dreams that I may not for- 
get, 

Is not wrapped in the cloud of a ceaseless 
regret : 

There is light on my way, 
There is joy in to-day ; 



OTHER THOUGHTS 199 

There is full compensation and- more 
For the lost treasure-store 
That my hands in a grave had reluctantly laid, 
Ere I knew that the flush of the dawnlight 
must fade 
In the fulness of noontide — and how 
In the joy that has come to me now 
I should find the Fulfilment of all that was 

Promise alone, 
Through the years into strength and maturity 
grown. 

I have learnt that the farthest is always the 

best : I have seen 
That the hope of the Future is lighting the 

distance between, 
And its charm will be over me there ; and I 
know 
That the Presence beside me will go — 
That the Voice which of all is the sweetest to 

me 
To the end of the journey my comfort will be : 
Not a shadow of dread for the pathway 

unknown — 
Not a fear lest the twilight should find me 
alone — 
On my spirit remains : I am strong, 
For I know that the Hand which has guided 
me safely and long 
Will be with me ; the Heart will be true 
Which has cared for me all the way through. 



2oo A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 



" Rejoice in hope." — Rom. xii. 12. 

CAY — if we know that, down this tide of 

^ years, 

Our lives are passing to a goal so fair, 

And if we know that all the night of tears 

Will be forgotten when we enter there — 

Is it not strange that you and I, to-day, 
So near the perfect life, should still forget 
Our hope, and let the trifles on our way 
Move us with joy or sorrow even yet ? 

I think that we should dwell within the light 
And glory of the kingdom, even here, 
And so, until our faith be changed for sight, 
Let earth be bright because God's heaven is 
near. 



THE SILVER LINING. 

SPHERE is always the beautiful light, you 
know, 
Above in the changeless blue, 
Though the clouds of the earth-life that roll 
below 
May hide them away from view. 



OTHER THOUGHTS 201 

And we know that the folly is yours and 
mine ; 

The fault is only our own, 
If we will not abide where the sunbeams shine, 

But here in the dark, alone. 



FALLEN ASLEEP. 

"For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 
even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God 
bring with Him. "—i Thess. iv. 14. 

V>JUR loved and lost, 
For whom so long we wept, 
Sleep only as He slept ; 
Beyond life's mystery and pain 
We know that they shall wake again. 
No longer now the tomb 
Is veiled in awful gloom ; 
To-day, the Glory of the cross 
Shines through the bitterness of loss. 
Somewhere — sometime — 
In yonder deathless clime, 
We know that God will surely give 
Us back our own ; and we shall live 
Because the Lamb, who once was slain 
For our offences, lives again. 

Our guilt on Him was laid - y 
His blood our ransom paid ; 



202 A BELIEVER'S THOUGHTS 

For us, the Son of God 
Death's shadow- valley trod ; — 
And lo ! tor us He left the grave, 
And lives again, with power to save. 

So, where the shades are calm and still, 
The forms we love shall sleep until, 
Raised in the likeness of their King, 
His children with Him He shall bring. 



INDEX OF FIRST LINES 
— » — i 



All things change around us ; day by day 

Amid earth's toil and weariness 

Answer me — answer me, Father 

Are they not with us always ? Day by day 

Are we not vainly seeking, day by day . 

Be brave ! Be patient ! . 

Because, by faith in Christ, my soul has passed 

Because He lives ..... 

Because the Master is not here 

Because Thou also hast been tempted — tried 

Behold a cross !■ — and on the cross a Form 

Beneath the shadow of the cross I stand . 

But what is this ? . 



PAGE 

37 



After all the restless wandering . . 

Ah, Dear! I will not weep 

Ah 1 who shall solve this problem for me — who 163 

22 

J 53 

104 

77 
129 



85 

167 

iS7 

76 

152 

133 

149 

148 



Call him not harsh who with such kindly touch 33 

Do hearts grow old, 1 wonder? . . .176 

Do something I Though your chosen task 

may lie . . . . . . .74 

Do thou thy work ! Let not thy hands . . 76 

Dreams that have missed fulfilment . . .130 

Facts are still facts ! They do not alter when . 179 

Fearest thou the way before thee ? . . .64 

203 



2o 4 INDEX OF FIRST LINES 



PAGE 

For ever and for ever — can it be . . .128 
For the sake of those .... 40 

Give me not honour ; think not well of me . 192 

God is not man — that in the day ... 22 

God keep you, Dear !..... 24 

God knew best! . . . . • • 59 

God will not change I The restless years may 

bring . . . . . . .11 

God would not have us think about to-morrow 69 

Has He written on thy heart .... 73 
He has not changed through all the years . 136 

He knoweth I Take His hand ... 64 

Here on the light of meeting, dark . . .124 

also glory in my tribulation . . . .163 

am not questioning Thy will to-night . . 52 

cannot reach Thee through the mists which lie 101 

cannot understand ; about my path . . 16 

cannot understand ; — I do not know . . 3 

dare not call you back : have I not prayed . 49 

do not know what lies in store for me . , 121 

do not think of them as old ... 36 

find a Guide .... . . 63 

have heard Thy voice, O Jesus . . . 141 
have no dearer birthday wish for thee . .194 

know He dwells in me; I dare not doubt . 47 

know He is not farther from my life . . 23 

know — I know 1 ...... 187 

know not where the years my bark may bear 68 

know, O Jesus, in the bitter hour . . 87 

know that long ago I saw my sin . . 140 

know the rest, the quiet rest ... 10 

know the skies are dark to-night ... 94 

know to-night ...... 186 

lift my eyes to see ..... 141 

offered Him my eyes, and hands, and feet . 50 
remember a day . . . . . .196 



INDEX OF FIRST LINES 20; 



I remember how Thy guiding hand . 

I remember in the restless hour . , 

I saw Him with His glory laid aside 

I see Thee now ..... 

I shall not perish ; — only like a sleep 

I shall see you again, and the gloom of the night 

I stretched my hand and gathered of the fruit 

I think, if you and I could see to-day 

I think of you at morn and noon and eve . 

I would that my soul might love Thee more 

If I forget ...... 

If in the judgment day He speak to thee . 

If the storm-clouds had not parted, Dear . 

If thou art far away from Him 

If, through the shadows cold and grey 

If we were standing, you and I, to-night . 

In dreams it comes to me ! 

In the days of thy youth remember Him . 

In the morning — in the calm, still morning 

Is life enough for you ? . 

Is there no room for Jesus 

Is this the answer? — In the dawn I prayed 

It is He 

It is so sweet to know .... 

It is well that when storm-clouds 

It matters not ...... 

It seems to me ..... 

Leave in the hands of thy Father 
Let us believe the best ; there are enough, you 
know ...... 

Let us not say an unkind word to-day 
Lord, day by day 

Love that was strong enough to undertake 
Love whispers through the gloom of night 

May God's own smile about thy pathway shine 
Memories of all our Father's leading 



PAGE 

6 
162 

H3 
151 
167 
116 

5i 
81 

3 1 

157 

7 
194 

68 

21 
I90 
126 
Il6 

20 
I29 

58 
I38 



I48 

29 

195 

57 
69 

185 

79 

54 

146 

70 

10 
6< 



2o6 INDEX OF FIRST LINES 



My God, Thou art my Shield . . 

My Lord — my Lord 

My mission is to do the work which lies 

My prayer is finished, yet I linger still 

My prayer is hushed. Ah 1 Dearest, say, is thine 

No longer in uncertainty I wait 

Not always ! I have waited through long years 

Not on my guilty head . 

Now the mists of pain and sorrow 

Now we see Thee ; now we know Thee 

O child of God, thy Father knows . 

O dying Christ .... 

O God, be pitiful ! . 

O Heart, that in thy lonely grief to-night 

O tell me — tell me — on the other shore 

Oftentimes our watchful eyes . 

Only afar we stand .... 

Our hands meet and our eyes ; our voices speak 

Our loved and lost .... 

Our silver and our gold . 

Pale grows the light that shone at dawn of day 
Pray on — pray on — meanwhile this soul of mine 

Restless years that come and go . . 

Say — if we know that, down this tide of years 
Seek not to choose thy path alone . 
Shadows are hiding the noonday sun 
Shall He who comes unto His own to-day 
Shine through life's darkest gloom, O Presence 

of the King ..... 
Since I may write a message to His world 
Since still there burns within my heart . 
Sing me an old song, Darling . 
Sometime, O Soul, on thee shall fall 



PAGE 

ii 

99 

74 
106 

85 

180 
177 
146 
119 
18 

99 
147 
101 
152 
118 

67 
in 

3° 
201 
172 

124 
103 

39 

200 

9 
66 

J 39 

12 

80 

120 

191 

184 



INDEX OF FIRST LINES 207 



Sometime — sometime 
Sometimes our hands have touched . 
Soon it will all be forgotten . . 
Strive not so much to Do, but learn to Be 
Suffer not my feet to stumble . 

Take the sunshine of to-day . 

Tell Jesus when life's burden seems . 

The end is not with thee 

The old earth-life is past .... 

The world we know .... 

The world, what is it at its best? . 

The world will seek its own . 

The years so quickly pass ; it seems to me 

There are some thoughts too deep — too beautiful 

There is a God .... 

There is always a thought which underlies 
There is always the beautiful light, you know 
There is no sadness in life's eventide 
There is sunlight for to-morrow 
There must be thorns amid life's flowers, you 
know ...... 

Think not in thine hour of sorrow . 
This one thing let us do . 
Thou art with me, O my Father 
Thou standest falsely in the place of God 
Though the seasons are full of changes . 

We have to take the rough things with the 

smooth ...... 94 

11 We shall know each other better " . .127 
What am I but a servant in whose hand . . 75 
Would I might stand 4I 

Yes, the sunny days are here once more . . 32 
You would not heed me, Dear . . .173 

Your life is spent in service : day by day . . 86 



PAGE 

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174 
122 

47 
66 

66 
150 
125 

52 
181 
171 

193 
185 

42 

*3 
119 

200 
29 

93 

95 

l 9 

175 

i5 

180 

187 



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